


A Sword of Fire and Light

by BattleFries



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic (Video Game)
Genre: Additional Romances To Be Determined, But Also Sometimes Dark and Pragmatic, Dreamer Inquisitor, Force Walking, Light Side Sith Inquisitor, Magic is the Force, Solas is Fen'Harel (Dragon Age), Solas is a villain, Star Wars: The Old Republic - Echoes of Oblivion Spoilers, Star Wars: The Old Republic - Patch 6.2 Spoilers, Star Wars: The Old Republic - Spoilers for Everything, Thedas is a Primitive Backwater
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:40:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 26,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28131042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BattleFries/pseuds/BattleFries
Summary: After years of hard work, battle, betrayal, and sacrifice, Aloisia Kallig has finally won her true war.  The Sith Emperor - enemy of all life in the galaxy - is gone forever.  She and her wife, Lana Beniko, decide to take a vacation away from the fledgling war between the Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic.  But things are never quite so simple, and after yet another betrayal, the Alliance Commander finds herself stranded on a backwater world mired by war between Force-users called 'mages' and their would be executioners called Templars.And then she ends up with a strange ritual seared into her left hand as the only hope to save this world.  But Darth Imperius, the Outlander of Zakuul, the Alliance Commander has faced down threats to the entire galaxy.  This is just one world.  Saving a single world shouldn't be all that difficult, not at all.Right...?
Relationships: Lana Beniko/Female Sith Inquisitor
Comments: 17
Kudos: 48





	1. The End of the Beginning

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Age of the Dragon](https://archiveofourown.org/works/6149431) by [ms_katonic](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ms_katonic/pseuds/ms_katonic). 
  * Inspired by [Herald of Time and Space](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21735094) by [poetikat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/poetikat/pseuds/poetikat). 
  * Inspired by [What Was, What Was Not](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20103949) by [RainofAugust](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainofAugust/pseuds/RainofAugust). 
  * Inspired by [The Half-Life of Element Zero](https://archiveofourown.org/works/11216709) by [GraphiteGirl](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GraphiteGirl/pseuds/GraphiteGirl). 



> Hello all, and welcome to this story of mine. It's still very much a work in progress, but a few notes to start out with. First and foremost, I do not make any claim to Star Wars, Dragon Age, or any of the characters, places, or numerous wonders contained therein. I've merely taken my PC from The Old Republic and inserted her into the world of Dragon Age. There are a few other details I'll leave for the end of this first chapter, as I don't want to take too much of your time. Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy this story.

“Had an eventful day, have we?”

Lana’s question was kind and lighthearted, despite the gravity of the situation. It had certainly been an eventful day for Aloisia Kallig, known to some as Darth Imperius, to all as the Alliance Commander, and to her truly wonderful wife crouching before her as Aloy. Lana hadn’t been able to accompany Aloisia to confront the Sith Emperor, in all of his various incarnations to end him once and for all, but of course she was here to pick her beloved off the floor.

Lana Beniko would never allow herself to be so casual if she didn’t already know that the threat had finally been dealt with, so Aloisia would allow herself to joke a bit. “I’ve had worse,” she said, waving a stray lock of long, red hair out of her face. “What’s next on the agenda?” As much as she hated it, Aloisia was a major player in galactic affairs. Though she had once sat on the Dark Council of the Sith Empire, now that she was in a position to choose, she could no longer support the institution that had kept her for years as a slave, and that still enslaved millions to this day. Alas, the Republic would only settle for her engaging in the same two-faced manipulations that had driven her away from the Empire in the first place.

Fearing that she would be asked to renew her status as a double-agent, Lana’s smile caught her off guard. “Honesty… nothing.” Aloisia’s surprise must have shown on her face, as Lana’s burning yellow eyes took on a mischievous glint. “But I’m sure we can find some way to occupy ourselves.” The promise of some private time with her wife immediately brightened Aloisia’s mood as she rose to her feet. Lana filled her in on a few details about what everyone else had been up to after rescuing Satele and her students from Tenebrae’s final attempt to cling to life. Thankfully, that threat was gone forever.

Or at the very least, Aloisia hoped that he was gone forever. It was very, very hard to eliminate all doubt from her mind. From as young as she could remember, Aloisia had been brought up to believe that the Emperor was the supreme being of the universe, his Empire’s victory over the Republic a mere matter of time, for the Emperor was surely infallible, and he would not forsake his people. Even in the wake of Yavin and the Revanites, Aloisia hadn’t been sure of the threat.

No, it wasn’t until she had witnessed the death of Ziost from orbit above the planet – where she had felt all at once the deaths of every living being on the Sith Empire’s de facto mercantile capital – that she knew that the Emperor did not care about his empire, and that he had to be stopped. Even with all of her experiences behind her, it was still difficult not to slip into everyday phrases that had been part of everyday life for the first two and a half decades of her life. Aloisia hated it, but she still had to stop herself from saying ‘Thank the Emperor’ in relief. She was getting closer, but the wounds that Tenebrae had inflicted on the Sith Empire were so deep that it had shaken her faith in the entire system, and that had led her to side with the Republic.

But such thoughts could wait. For now, she would focus on her wife. The two of them, both Sith who had left the Empire behind them, both integral players in the Alliance that they had both founded, they both deserved some time to themselves. Aloisia leaned over Lana’s shoulder as her wife sat in the pilot’s seat. “What heading should I set?” Lana asked.

Part of her was surprised that Lana even asked. So much of her life since meeting the lovely blonde Sith woman had consisted of being bossed around thanks to Lana’s tremendous intellect that it sometimes seemed as if Lana had her life planned out from now until the end to the smallest detail. The truth was far different, and they had come to accept each other as true partners in every sense of the word.

With that in mind, Aloisia gladly gave her instructions. “Take us anywhere, Lana. As long as we’re together. I’d say we’ve earned a vacation, and in case you’re about to protest, I am using my authority as both Alliance Commander and your occasional brat of a wife to give an order.”

Lana chuckled. “You silly fool. It shall be as you say. Coordinates locked in. Now, let’s go and get away from it all. Just the two of us.”

A chill ran through Aloisia’s spine as Lana spun up the hyperdrive, but it was too late. Through the cockpit transparisteel, she could see the ship turning away from the course Lana had set, moving on its own before jumping to hyperspace.

“Lana, what’s going on?” Aloisia said, panic filling her voice.

“I don’t know, Aloy. Dammit! Navigational controls aren’t responding. I’m completely locked out! Wait a minute… There’s a message recorded in the ship’s databanks. It’s playing, I can’t stop it.”

Lana had been strong for her so often, so Aloisia would be strong for them both now. Putting a reassuring hand on her wife’s shoulder, she leaned in as a small holo of her Republic contact – a human man named Jonas Balkar – flickered into being.

“Commander. If you’re seeing this message, then I’m sorry. I know how eager you were to join the fight against the Empire. I read your psyche profile, and I have an idea as to what this fight means to you. You want to liberate everyone you feel has been enslaved by the Sith Emperor, be they literal slaves or merely slavishly obeying precepts he set into place when he formed his Empire. Unfortunately, my superiors are far more paranoid than I thought. If you’re seeing this message, then at least I was able to let you know why this is happening. I tried to stop it, but in the end, all I could do was let you know what was happening. You deserve that much.

“With your moving to retake your seat on the Dark Council, combined with your zeal to join the fray openly… Too many narrow-minded bureaucrats who don’t know what it’s like out in the field decided that you were too dangerous, either on the Dark Council as an enemy or as a volatile asset. Many of them aren’t entirely sure of your mental wellbeing after five years spent in carbonite, not to mention what we’ve heard about the Sith Emperor sharing space in your mind. Add to that, most of them are die-hard Suresh loyalists who know how to hold a grudge.

“They’ve been waiting to make this move, and now that the Emperor is finally and permanently gone, they’ve locked your navicomputer and sent you as far into the Rishi Maze as they can. The only reason they didn’t blow up your ship on the spot was because they feared you might just hop to another body and become the next Valkorion, Vitiate, whatever his name is. To top it all off, the self-destruct has been disabled. If I were you, I’d hope against hope that you find a habitable world at the end of your journey. For what it’s worth, I’m going dark after this to try and make the scum who did this pay. You deserve that much at least.

“I’ll be in touch with Theron Shan. He and I go back a ways. At the very least, he’ll know what happened, and your Alliance will hopefully still be able to do some good, though I sincerely hope he knows where you decided to place your loyalties. If not, then the Republic will get what it deserves for betraying you. And if Theron does know, and he decides not to help the Republic… Well, I won’t shed any tears.

“I’m running short on time and data, so I’ll say once more that I’m sorry it came to this. I don’t know much about the Force, so I’ll just wish you good luck, Commander. I hope you won’t need it.”

The holo blinked out, leaving the two women with mouths agape as the blue-white glow of hyperspace engulfed the cockpit window. Lana eventually broke the silence. “While I’ve learned a bit about slicing, I know enough to know that I’m not good enough to break any encryption that would be on a target of this priority. It’s possible that the locks on the navicomputer will be disabled once we reach our destination. We might be able to make it back if we just-“

“No, Lana.” Aloisia sighed, holding her aching forehead with her right hand. “Just, no. The mission is over. Tenebrae is gone for good, or so I desperately hope. And I’ve had my fill of both the Empire and the Republic. They can burn each other to dust for all I care. Hopefully Theron will keep the Alliance in check until he can install someone in power who will actually give a damn about the everyday people of the galaxy.”

Slumping into a chair, Aloisia closed her eyes and took shallow breaths. “I’m just tired, Lana. Tired of betrayal after betrayal. Tired of nothing ever being good enough. There’s always someone else out there with petty demands and twisted schemes that mean nothing in the end, because good people are still fighting a war that should never have been waged in the first place. The war was never anything more than death to fuel Tenebrae’s grasp for more power, but nobody cares anymore, so why stop fighting? I say we leave them to it, and we take our vacation, Lana. It’ll just be more permanent than we thought.”

Lana was out of her chair in an instant, crouching down on the floor, holding Aloisia’s hands in her own. “Aloy, dearest… I’ve known you felt exhausted and disillusioned before, but this… I can’t believe I didn’t see it coming sooner. And I’ve too often been the one to push you down a path without leaving you much choice. No sooner than you were out of carbonite did I expect you to be back to normal. The fact that you were able to keep up as well as you did is remarkable enough.”

Lana looked away and closed her eyes. “And the Alliance. It had been in the works for years before I set out to rescue you from Zakuul, and I suppose we all just expected you to lead us as you had before, because that’s what you did. All the same, I was the one who forced you into the role, because I simply saw no alternative. I was always thinking about what was best for the galaxy, and I fear I left my concerns for you come in a distant second place. I’m so sorry, Aloy.”

Aloisia couldn’t help but chuckle. A blink of her eyes showed her that their shuttle had reverted to real space, made a small change of course, and then jumped back into hyperspace. “Lana, I wouldn’t be alive if not for you. The carbonite was killing me, and you saved my life more times than I can count. And you knew exactly the kind of person I was when you formed that Alliance. I may have been the one leading the charge on the ground, and I may have been the face of the operation, but you set the foundations. You knew that the truly important tasks in front of us were ending war and helping people, and that you trusted me with such an important responsibility… Lana, I owe you everything.”

The shuttle reverted back to realspace again, and the stars were closer together, she saw, before they jumped back into hyperspace. They must be within the Rishi Maze proper now. “If Tenebrae has taught me anything, it’s that the foundation of a group is its real strength. The Sith Empire and Zakuul are both either dying or dead because they were made first and foremost as tools for a madman. But the Alliance was made to help people, and that’s your doing Lana. It may very well outlive us both, and your legacy will remain to help people caught in the middle of warring factions. But Tenebrae was my battle, and with it behind me, I just want to stop fighting and maybe try having a life of my own with the woman I love. Is that so wrong a thing to want?”

A few more microjumps had been made over the course of the conversation. “No, dearest. It’s not wrong at all,” Lana said. “And it’s our legacy, not mine. Ours, and Theron’s, and everyone who joined us in the hopes of a better future for the galaxy. And I’ve always said that I’ll follow wherever you lead. Speaking of which…”

The shuttle exited hyperspace, and the ship began to rock. A glance out the window showed that they had emerged close enough to a planet to be ensnared in its gravity field. “Let me check… Dammit! The entire navigation system is locked down, including the landing system and sublight engines! At least there’s an escape pod. I suggest we not tarry. Follow me!”

It was a small shuttle, but Lana knew it better than Aloisia did, so she let her lover lead the way as they made their way into a rather cramped pod with only two seats. Thankfully, two was all they needed.

“Here, get in and sit down. Don’t fuss and let me strap you in,” Lana said as she went about securing Aloisia’s safety harness. “Good, you’re all set. You’d better keep that stubborn streak. I’m counting on you not to die on me.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Aloisia said with a grin. “Now get yourself strapped in, love.”

“Of course. Let me just-“

Lana didn’t manage to finish her sentence as the escape pod sealed and jettisoned before the next word left her lips.

“Lana!” Aloisia said, reaching out with the Force to hold her wife suspended in midair, though the effort strained her as the pod sped up. And they hadn’t even started the re-entry sequence yet.

“Aloy!” Lana yelled, sounding truly panicked for perhaps the first time since they had met all those years ago. “No, I won’t leave you! Not here, not like this!”

“Lana, I’m sorry!” Aloisia sobbed. “I’m still drained after the fight with Tenebrae. I… I don’t think I can safely strap you in. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s not your fault, my love. Just, bring me over to you. If I’m to die, then let me spend my final moments in your arms.”

Aloisia sobbed as she pulled with the Force and held Lana close to her, the two women holding onto each other with their arms and with the Force. “Don’t be silly, dear. This isn’t the end for us. We’ve got a big vacation planned together. And we’re going there together. You’ll see.”

Feeling Lana close her eyes, Aloisia felt a calm come over Lana that she hadn’t expected. “I believe you. I won’t leave you. No matter what happens, I won’t leave you. I won’t leave you. I love you too much, so I won’t ever-“

The sudden jerk of rapid re-entry jerked Lana loose from Aloisia’s grip, and her body went flying. Her head hit the side of the escape pod, and Lana Beniko was silent in the Force.

As Aloisia Kallig wept for what the galaxy had stolen from her, the sun rose on the Kingdom of Ferelden, and the ongoing war between mages and Templars didn’t allow anyone the opportunity to look up and see something unknown to any of them fall from the sky and crash into a hillside in the Hinterlands. And when it impacted into the earth, the Alliance Commander surrendered to unconsciousness.

* * *

The world was too green. That was the first thing that came into Aloisia’s mind, and it occurred to her that she should be thinking of rather more important things. But it was so hard to do when the land, the sky, the floating islands off in the distance, all of it was tinted in a sickly green glow. It reminded her of Satele Shan’s inner mindscape in a way, only she was on Odessen, back at the Alliance headquarters. But where there would normally be throngs of people, only frail wisps of energy were to be seen.

Wandering over to the lift, Aloisia descended into the heart of her base. She needed to consult with her advisors. The War Room was another shade of green, but the familiar faces were there. Normally, Lana would be the one to lead these meetings, but standing in her place was Sana-Rae.

“Welcome, Commander,” the Voss mystic said. “I am Truth. You are beset by many anxieties and doubts, but Truth is immutable. I can help you understand what is and what is not.”

“You want truth, Commander?” Bey’wan Aygo spat. “The truth is that you’re a traitor twice over. First you betrayed the Empire, and then you gave up on the Republic. A true patriot never stops fighting for their home!”

“Admiral Aygo?” Aloisia was confused. “I could have sworn you’d left the Alliance.”

“That is not Bey’wan Aygo,” Sana-Rae interjected. “He is Patriotism. To him, I would say that while your allegiance to a faction has shifted, your cause has ever been the same. To protect the people of the galaxy. Is that not patriotic in and of itself?”

“A discussion for another time,” Doctor Oggurobb said. “This place, this dreamscape we find ourselves in! It is truly inspiring! I will make what I can of it, for if I do not, then who will?”

“Oh, you’re always good for a laugh, Creativity,” Hylo Visz said, half snorting as she spoke. “Now, Commander, is it? You let ol’ Guile here be your guide, and you’ll be knee deep in credits before you can blink. Credits not your thing? Then why don’t we just play a round or two of sabaac. You win if you can figure out how I cheat.”

“It doesn’t matter why. You always cheat. It never changes,” Theron said, his voice tinged with bitterness and regret.

Hylo snorted again. “Oh, lighten up once in a while, Cynicism. You’ll ruin the Commander’s mood. You don’t want Fear or Despair coming to visit, do you? I like her as she is.”

Aloisia shook her head, too confused to form a coherent sentence until now. “Enough! Please, somebody explain! Why are you all using these strange code-names! Who do I even ask if I want a straight answer?!”

“I would think that would be obvious, dearest.”

Aloisia turned to see the face of her wife. Except, it wasn’t her. Not quite. Not only did she feel different, somehow, but she was dressed in her green and black robes and cloak that she had worn years ago and since discarded. All the same, she had to know. “Lana? Is that you?”

“No. I am Pragmatism. And I can tell you, quite plainly, that if you want a truthful answer, then you should just ask Truth. I’m just as likely to hide things or emphasize others to make you decide on the most desirable course of action. But for pure, unadulterated truth, just ask the one who wears the face you call Sana-Rae. Of course, this is the Fade, so any aspect you see is merely a reflection of your own thoughts and emotions. What you glean from Truth will be very different from what anyone else might understand.”

Aloisia looked away from Lana and focused on Sana-Rae. “You’re not my advisors. Not really. You’re manifestations of the Force, each of you embodying a single concept or aspect. Is that right?”

Sana-Rae – no, not Sana-Rae – Truth nodded. “Yes. What you know as the Force, the people of this world know as magic, and we are what their mages would call ‘spirits,’ though we are not the souls of the dead that you associate with the term. Each of us embodies an aspect of mortal thought, and we reflect the thoughts of those who visit us. You expected a council of advisors, and we were drawn to you. We are advisors, just not of the same sort that you are accustomed to. You are dreaming, and in so doing, your consciousness comes here to the Fade, where spirits call home. When you awaken, you will do so in the same place where you fell asleep, however far you wander while in the Fade.”

“I have so many questions,” Aloisia said. “But I fear that I don’t have the time to ask them all.”

“Another time, then,” Truth said. “Seek any of us out, and we will answer you. But be wary of your darker emotions. Fear, despair, mistrust, and more. These will take the shape of others, and they may catch you unawares. Some may seek to enter your body. Such a thing is dangerous for both you and for the spirit, though such negative aspects are known to most as ‘demons.’ The truth is a matter of perception, as Pragmatism explained. My words might seem true to you, but others might see them differently.”

“One last question, before I have to go,” Aloisia begged, her eyes turning briefly to Pragmatism before settling once more on Truth. “Is Lana dead? Will I ever see her again as Lana Beniko, and not as a spirit of this Fade?”

Truth shook her head with a gentle smile. “This question cannot be answered with a simple yes or no. The only thing that I can say is that there is no death. But there is not only the Force. The universe is far more vast and complicated than to allow for such a simplistic answer.

“And now, it is time for you to wake up, Commander.”

* * *

“Aloy? Aloy, dear. Can you hear me?”

“I’m still dreaming,” Aloisia realized as she regained some memory of what had happened. “Lana is… Lana died.”

“In a sense, I did. Now open your eyes already, you ridiculous fool.”

And so she did, and Aloisia saw before her the spectral, ghostly image of Lana Beniko, waiting patiently for her to undo her safety harness. “Lana?”

“I told you that I wouldn’t leave you, and I meant it, my love,” Lana’s spirit said, her eyes full of tears she could not shed.

Not patient enough to undo her harness bit by bit, Aloisia used the Force to rip her bindings to shreds before exiting the escape pod. Lana’s specter followed her into a green hillside surrounded by snowy mountains. “How, Lana?”

“I always told you that knowledge, truth, and the Force were closer to my heart than any title could ever be. I wasn’t just your advisor. Although that took up much of my time, I yearned to go back to the days before I entered Darth Arkous’s service, when the knowledge of the Force was what I lived for. I learned that Force ghosts tend to persist because of a strong attachment, be it to a place, and object, or simply a desire not to end. While you were protecting me, I was focusing all my being on my attachment to you, and how I yearned for it not to end. And it worked. I swore I would follow you wherever you led, my love. And I don’t intend to let a silly thing like death stand in the way of that promise.”

Aloisia was beside herself with warmth and love for this wonderful woman who thought that death was but a minor detail to be put aside for another moment together. All the same, she remembered the last moments of the ghosts she had once had bound to her. When she had released them, they had known true freedom in death. Lana knew this, for Aloisia had shared the story with her.

“I know what you’re thinking, my love, and this was my choice. Don’t you dare beat yourself up, Aloy.”

Aloisia laughed. “Far be it from me to ever argue with you, but while I was asleep, I communed with spirits of some sort that claim to be aspects of ‘mortals’ such as us. A supposed aspect of Truth said that the people here know the Force only as ‘magic.’ Such a lot is likely to be superstitious and ignorant, and I don’t want to fry them all to a crisp just because they see my wife as a ghost.”

She closed her eyes and tried to clear her mind, but it was difficult to think with Lana’s presence half-there and half-elsewhere. “I have an idea, Lana. We could become closer than we would have ever been while alive, and we would always be together without needing to spook the locals with a ghost. All the same, I went down this path once, and I’m not sure if it’s wise to go down it again.”

“What path is that?” Lana asked, her arms crossed, her eyebrows arched. “To bind my death to your life, and your life to my death? To perform the Force-walking ritual with me?”

“How did…” Aloisia stopped herself and chuckled. “I don’t need to ask how you know. You’re my better half. I have no secrets from you. And you’ve always been the clever one. I would only do it with your consent. You have to know I wouldn’t force you.”

“Consider me willing and offering myself to you, forever and always, dearest,” Lana said. “Unfortunately, as I recall, the deed needs to be signed in a ritual of blood. Barbaric, but far be it from me to get in the way of doing things properly.”

Aloisia dug back into the escape pod and fished out a backpack full of survival gear, then pulled out a knife. “It’s neither unfortunate nor barbaric, Lana. Blood and life are one of the same, and the shedding of blood is an act of death. This ritual is a bit of both, so it’s entirely fitting. Are you ready?”

“I’m ready, my love. Let us be bound together for eternity.”

Aloisia let the knife cut across her palm, a few drops of blood trickling onto the grass below, and Lana’s sprit surged into Aloisia’s body. She felt stronger than ever before, far more powerful than she had with her four prior ghosts, and even Valkorion’s power was nothing next to this. This power went beyond bargains with indifferent spirits or a monster in a man’s form. Now, they were a whole being. There was no line where Aloisia ended and Lana began. One might be in control of the body, but they were fully united in spirit.

“Incredible,” they said, and it was both of their voices at once that spoke as they took in their body and felt the power surging through it.

As the two lovers remarked at their new bond, they didn’t hear the pair of men spot them from behind. “Did you see that? Blood magic! Silence her! Quickly!”

Aloisia turned her head to see two men in metal armor, their chest plates adorned with a downward facing sword wreathed in flames. One of them drew his own blade, while the other seemed to be calling on the Force himself.

Aloisia would have loved to try and calm them down, but for whatever reason, they had deemed her ‘blood magic’ to be something to be feared and destroyed. She tried to call upon a storm of lightning to drive them back, but her efforts to touch the Force felt stifled. When she tried to listen to its currents, she heard only silence.

“No, this isn’t right. Lana, if you know what’s going on, I’d appreciate your help.”

_“I don’t know!”_ the voice within her soul said to her. _“The Force isn’t gone, but somehow, they’re suppressing your access to it. I may be able to still enact some influence, but I’m not sure.”_

“We’ll find out later. This ends now,” Aloisia said as she drew her lightsaber. The fire-colored blade ignited first, followed quickly by the ‘guard’ of the weapon. She sliced through the blade coming her way and stabbed the attacker in the gut, then moved quickly to decapitate the man prohibiting her from touching the Force.

And just like that, her world came flowing back to her.

Aloisia disengaged her weapon and moved to interrogate the man with his sword melted in two. Hopefully he’d be easier to question in his wounded condition.

The injured soldier had collapsed to his knees, and he refused to look at Aloisia every time she tried to catch his gaze. All the while he kept uttering, “Andraste, have mercy. Andraste, have mercy. Andraste, have mercy.”

Aloisia didn’t know who or what Andraste was, but figured that it was likely some sort of deity, or maybe a leader of some faction or another. Quite frankly, the man sounded like a fanatic, and Aloisia wasn’t sure if she wanted to hear whatever answers he had. All the same, he couldn’t be allowed to spread word of the ‘blood mage’ with such a distinctive weapon, with hair and armor that seemed painted to match the blade. Nature had done for her hair, but the designs of the armor had been commissioned to match the color of the other two.

“I’m sorry, soldier,” Aloisia said as she ignited her lightsaber once more.

The soldier let out a manic cry, as if of glee? “The Blade of Mercy! Maker, take me to your side!”

Aloisia didn’t understand, but she made it swift and painless, removing his head with a single stroke. The deed done and the confrontation over with, Aloisia began moving the bodies into the escape pod on her own. Maybe it was the sight of blood, or maybe the people here were superstitious in general, but Aloisia had a feeling that whatever culture this world had was primitive at best, and its technology even less than that, for them to still rely on blades that didn’t even seem to account for the possibility of energy weapons. Indeed, such blades indicated a lack of even basic slugthrower guns. The intact metal sword and its sheathe were added to Aloisia’s belt, and she took some of the soldiers’ supplies and stored them in her backpack to examine later.

_“I saw a written language on some of the items you put away,”_ Lana said from within. _“It looked foreign, but given time, I’m sure I can decipher it, quite possibly literally. If I approach it as just another form of code, then it shouldn’t take too long. And when I understand the language, so will you, my love. And if you can’t, then at least you’ll have a reliable translator on hand whenever you need her.”_

_“Thank you, Lana. How did I ever get by without you in my life?”_

_“You managed quite ably well before we ever met, Darth Imperius of the Dark Council. You attained that seat and everything that came with it without any aid from me, and the Empire would have fallen already without your aid on Makeb. Not to mention the small task of personally ridding the galaxy of the Dread Masters.”_

_“Don’t remind me, Lana. Part of me wonders if I did the right thing in helping the Empire survive as long as I did. The Dread Masters were a threat to everyone, everywhere, so I did what had to be done. As for Makeb… If I hadn’t intervened, the planet would have been destroyed. On the other hand, saving it allowed the Empire to keep limping and dragging out the war. And even when I was in the process of saving Makeb… One of my advisors, Katha Niar, actually advocated that I use our resources to render the planet almost entirely uninhabitable. Did you know that?”_

_“I didn’t, but I’m glad you turned her down. And while I have you here, you don’t need to speak aloud for me to hear you. In fact, you probably shouldn’t, if you don’t want some superstitious locals thinking you’re crazy or possessed.”_

_“In a manner of speaking,”_ Aloisia retorted mentally, _“they’d be right. On the latter for sure. On the former? Debatable, but I’m leaning towards agreeing on that count.”_

_“Don’t even joke about that,”_ Lana chided her. _“You’ve suffered enough, so don’t make me worry even further. If we are to worry, however, is it just my imagination, or does the Force on this world feel different somehow? It’s not the lack of life like on Ziost, or the corruption of Nathema, but something isn’t right here.”_

Aloisia held still, closed her eyes, and centered herself before reaching out to the Force. _“The Force is strong here, but it feels… It’s hard to describe. It feels like a wound sewn shut very poorly, as if a stitch might come undone at any time without anyone noticing. As for what that means if the wound were to break open entirely, I can’t say. We should look into ways to heal it if at all possible. But that might explain the Fade.”_

_“Pardon?”_

_“Sorry, Lana. When I was unconscious and met those spirits I told you about, they said I was in a place called the Fade, which is supposedly a separate realm where peoples’ minds dwell when they dream. If the Force affects waking minds different from sleeping minds here… We have a lot to learn! This is the kind of adventure I’d always wanted to go on as part of the Sphere of Ancient Knowledge. Ashara and Talos would have loved this. Thankfully, the company I keep isn’t all that terrible herself.”_

_“Spare me from this onslaught of flattery,”_ Lana joked.

Aloisia laughed as she made to bring around the escape pod down upon it in an effort to conceal it, but she hesitated. _“Lana, if you have any preference for what to do with your body… It’s currently in the escape pod, sharing room with the dismembered bodies of those two soldiers. What would you have me do?”_

_“It’s strange to even be having this conversation, but I suppose I’d like for you to remove my body from the pod and bury it, if you can. Nothing special, but maybe a simple cairn of nearby rocks, on one of these green hills, maybe? It’s a lovely view, at least superficially peaceful. I’d like to hope that the Force calms down near here sometime soon, but as opposed to being buried in an escape pod with two random bodies, it sounds simply wonderful.”_

_“As you wish, my love.”_ So deciding, Aloisia gently levitated Lana’s lifeless body out of the escape pod and into her arms before setting it down on the ground a few feet away. Once the body and her effects – especially her lightsaber – were safely away from the escape pod, Aloisia risked calling on the Force to bring the hillside down upon the pod, burying it under the dirt and rocks.

With that done, Aloisia picked up Lana’s body in her arms, taking care not to use the Force. This was something she had to do on her own. She strode out of the small enclave where the skirmish with the soldiers had taken place and emerged onto a green hill that sloped down and out for at least a few kilometers. A lake could be seen in the distance, and what might be a settlement on one of its shores. It was nature barely touched by industry. Superficially, it reminded Aloisia of Tython.

“Here,” the two women agreed at once, and aloud at that. Using the Force to raise up a mound of grass and dirt, Aloisia gently set it aside as she lowered her wife’s body into the depression, crossing her arms across her chest and smoothing her eyelids shut. They came to a decision together to forgo a cairn of several stones. The mound of dirt was lifted with the Force and replaced on top of Lana’s body, then smoothed down around the edges. Lastly, Aloisia called a slab of rock over to set at the head of the grave. Withdrawing and igniting her lightsaber, she engraved the symbol of the Alliance on the stone. The symbol itself was simple but stark in its symbolism: the left half of the Jedi emblem and the right half of the Sith emblem meshed into one.

_“Unity and purpose, Lana. This is your legacy. And just in case you need to take control, you’ll need your own weapon. So here I am, strapping your lightsaber to my belt. It’s not a trophy, but I would be lying if I said it didn’t give me comfort to have something of yours close at hand that I can actually touch. And I won’t ever use it if I can help it, but if you need it, then it will be here for you.”_

Aloisia clipped the lightsaber to her belt and practiced unsheathing the physical sword that she had taken off of the soldier’s body. _“Very well. We’ll have to make do with this crude metal blade for now. Hopefully no one will be able to tell if you or I call upon the Force to hold the weight or predict an incoming strike. No flashy displays, no lightsaber, not until we know more or unless circumstance forces our hand. Agreed?”_

Lana said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. _“And while I appreciate your thoughtfulness with my lightsaber, I would have liked to have been consulted.”_

“ _It may be my body, but we are in this as equals, beloved. And there may come a time where I am unable to do what needs to be done, and you’ll have to take control. I trust you completely, and I want us to agree on things before we take action. You’re not just a spirit, Lana. You’re still my wife, and I love you as much as ever, if not more.”_ Aloisia took a deep breath. _“And as for the lightsaber, let’s make a deal. I won’t make any decisions about your possessions without consulting you if you don’t make me the leader of a group dedicated to saving everyone without consulting me. Sound fair?”_ she half-joked.

Aloisia felt Lana’s spirit blush, if such a thing were possible. _“Now I remember why I fell in love with you. In any event, yes. We are in agreement. Now, those soldiers have to have come from somewhere. There’s a settlement somewhere on the shore of that lake, which means some sort of civilization. Those men may have been looking for a fight, so there may be ‘mages’ along the way.”_

_“And if we find someone willing to speak to us, we can learn more about those soldiers and how they were able to negate our ability to call upon the Force. That’s something we need to learn to counteract as soon as possible.”_

_“Agreed. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to find civilization, if only to truly live as the scholar I’d always wanted to be.”_

_“For a given degree of ‘living,’ Lana, dear,”_ Aloisia thought at her with a smirk.

_“Oh, stars. I’ve just opened myself up to a slew of new and awful humor at my expense, haven’t I?”_

_“Having second thoughts, Lana?”_

_“None at all, Aloy. Come on, then. Let’s explore this strange new world, shall we?”_


	2. The Conclave

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Six months come and go after Aloisia crashes in Thedas. At a Conclave to negotiate peace between mages and Templars, everything goes to several sorts of hell, and Aloisia once again finds herself in the role of doing what no one else has the power or will to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: This chapter contains some dialogue lifted straight from the opening hours of Dragon Age: Inquisition. It is used in proper context, but I did try to mix things up at least a little bit with some of the lines.

Aloisia silently thanked the Force for the craftsman who had made the saddle she found herself riding in, for if she was at all sore now, she couldn’t imagine how sore she might have been had she been forced to ride any sort of animal with inferior protection. It wasn’t that Aloisia was unaccustomed to riding a living mount, but not over such great distance. There had always been speeders or shuttles.

Alas, this world was remarkably primitive in almost all respects. In the six months since she’d landed, Aloisia had come to learn that the southern part of this continent was embroiled in a civil war that had been centuries in the making. The nature of the Force in this world led to the potential for its spirits to inhabit a physical host and wreak untold havoc due to simple shock from both the spirit and the host. So-called mages were especially vulnerable, and so they were locked away in prisons that were supposedly academies of learning, but without the option to leave.

And these Circles, as they were called, were themselves the result of a primitive religion that had taken one of its core tenets to an absurd extreme. Approximately one thousand years ago, a woman named Andraste had led a rebellion against the Tevinter Imperium to the north, which was notorious for its abuse of magic and for its slave trade. Andraste’s revolt was successful, and the modern Imperium was a shadow of what it once was.

To prevent similar abuses of magic from oppressing the common folk, the religion formed on Andraste’s teachings – the Chantry – issued the command that ‘magic exists to serve man, and never to rule over him.’ The fear of magic, however, had led to quite the opposite. Mages were now the ones who were ruled over, and seldom allowed to use their gifts to serve anyone. That is, until the recent rebellion.

It had started almost four years prior to Aloisia’s crash on the planet, but one act of terrorism had been the spark to ignite flames of rebellion among the mages across the entire continent. The majority of them had voted to dissolve their Circles and were now viewed as ‘rebel mages.’ And some of these people did indeed seek vengeance for their harsh treatment over the centuries, but that only sparked the fury of the Templars.

On the other side of the conflict were the Templars, a religious order of soldiers dedicated to keeping mages in check, and to hunting down any who existed outside of Chantry supervision. At least, that had been the case before the war. It had been two Templars that had confronted Aloisia just after she’d bound Lana’s spirit to her, and they had the ability to nullify the Force, or at least, restrict someone’s access to it. How this was possible, Aloisia and Lana yearned to find out, but for now, they had decided to pose as a mercenary swordswoman, and so she had come to serve as a bodyguard for some of the rebel mages housed at Redcliffe.

The settlement they had espied from the crash site – Redcliffe, it was called – was playing host to the majority of those mages who wanted nothing more than to live their lives in peace, and the king of the nation of Ferelden had granted them sanctuary in this territory, called an arling. The surrounding hinterlands were a source of frequent skirmishes between traveling mages and Templars, who had themselves rebelled against the Chantry to exterminate any and all mages.

At long last, the leader of the Chantry, a woman called Divine Justinia V, had called a conclave to hold peace negotiations. The conclave would be held in a town called Haven, which was home to a temple that supposedly once held the ashes of Andraste, who was also the prophet and bride of their deity, the Maker, in addition to being a rebel leader.

As a simple sell-sword, Aloisia had found herself escorting a contingent of mages through the mountains to Haven, and she would be glad to finally be out of this saddle and able to move or relax freely. And maybe she’d be able to find some weak links in the Conclave’s participants to persuade to the cause of the mages. Their plight was especially horrifying to both Aloisia and Lana, who had both been raised in a society where the Force was universally acknowledged as a part of nature.

Alas, the Sith Empire had too many similarities to the hated Tevinter Imperium to declare their backgrounds loudly and proudly, so they would have to be more subtle in their interactions if they wanted to use the Force at all while stranded on this backwater world. If the superstitious religion wasn’t enough, there was the blatant racism against non-humans, which was ridiculous considering that so-called elves and dwarves had only the slightest difference in appearance from any other person. Pointed ears and a stout body shape were tiny things compared to glowing red eyes of a Chiss, or the montrals of a Togruta, or the compound eyes of a Voss, not to mention the various skin colors those species could have compared to the plain old human coloration of elves and dwarves.

At least they had finally arrived and Aloisia could get off her horse, which had been very patient with all of Aloisia’s mumbling, grumbling, and shifting about. She took her mount to the stables and sought out her charges. Soldiers in brown leather armor directed them to the mages’ camp, which was deliberately far away from the Templar camp, or as far away as could be in a small town like Haven.

Redcliffe, it turned out, was quite large as far as settlements went in this part of the world. Haven was a small town with only a few small buildings to its name, with the Temple of Sacred Ashes set a bit of a distance apart from the town proper. And it was cold! High up in the mountains, Aloisia felt the chill quite harshly, even with her well-made armor. Several people had asked if it was of dwarven make, and Aloisia had agreed if only to stop the questioning. Apparently, the designs on her armor resembled dwarven runes.

The conclave proper wasn’t to begin for another two days, so Aloisia decided to scout the settlement and see if there were any noteworthy threats to the mage camp, and to see if there were any particular individuals to be wary of. Lana helped her as she worked, sometimes catching something that Aloisia missed, but in the end, they came to the conclusion that the biggest risk would come from tempers flaring at a random moment that would be impossible to predict.

The day ended and Aloisia guided herself into a lucid dream, as she had ever since she’d discovered the Fade, with all of its wonders and its dangers. In order to protect herself and Lana, she had taken a part of the landscape of the Fade and separated it to form an island of sorts. After conjuring memories of the Alliance Headquarters on Odessen and molding this island in its likeness, she’d managed to establish the dreamscape equivalent of an IFF system that would recognize friendly and neutral spirits while keeping hostile entities away with distance, shields, and the dream equivalent of turbolasers. This was all assuming that dreamed up turbolasers would have any effect at all on anything.

Here, in the Fade, Aloisia and Lana could appear as they once had, with simulacra of their bodies with which they could interact with the Fade and each other without limitations. While their bodies were resting, Aloisia and Lana conjured starfighters that they would use to fly about the Fade and survey the dreamscape. They rarely found any answers, and after several warnings, they made sure not to approach the Black City, an island in the Fade far more distant from anything else than the Odessen-facsimile could ever be.

Supposedly, the Black City had once been the Golden City, and the Chantry held that it was the seat of the Maker himself, but it had turned black when Tevinter magisters had trespassed there, and from their hubris, the Blight had come to the world, and that led to a series of questions that needed answers of their own, but they would have to wait.

A new day was coming, and with it, another step towards what Aloisia hoped was a tentative peace, and maybe even greater freedoms for those gifted with the Force. Aloisia and Lana had their hopes and their expectations, and they were careful not to mix the two.

As the sun passed overhead and began to set, Aloisia decided to scout out the Temple of Sacred Ashes, where the true Conclave would be held. The mage camp and the Templar camp were on opposite sides of the temple, and Haven was a bit further away to ensure the safety of the civilian populace.

Surprisingly few people were actually guarding the Temple, which had Aloisia on edge. A sound and a tremor in the Force had her on edge.

And then everything exploded in a flash of green energy.

* * *

It was strange, rousing from unconsciousness without being in the Fade. After six months, Aloisia had gotten used to the strange phenomenon, but now she awoke to find herself kneeling in a dark cell with her hands bound by crude manacles, her wrists held apart by a band of steel connecting her restraints together. She sensed four guards surrounding her, becoming more alert as she regained her senses.

Far more pressing was the feeling in her left hand. It felt like nothing less than a Force ritual of some kind compressed into a blazing fire and seared into her flesh. What was its purpose? And how in all the stars had it ended up stuck in her hand?

 _“You’re awake! Thank the Force!”_ Lana’s voice came into her mind. _“I’m afraid I don’t know what happened. Some of our memories seem to be either blocked or else just gone. I don’t know how that happened, but I managed to keep anyone from removing your armor or our lightsabers. Electric shocks. I suggest you tell anyone suspicious that they’re enchantments to prevent theft. There was a man here, earlier, himself under guard, examining the mark on your hand. He told our captors that he believes it may be the key to solving a problem of theirs, the nature of which I couldn’t determine, but just reach out and feel. Something is very wrong, my love.”_

Aloisia closed her eyes and tried to shut out the pain from the flashing ritual in her hand as she reached out to sense the world around her. The wound in the Force that had been sewn delicately shut had ruptured, and pouring in through the wound was… _“The Fade? The wound had the Fade on the other side? If the world was once healthy, without this wound, then the Fade and the world we walk in while awake should be one and the same. But the wound isn’t healed at all. It’s open and bleeding. This is very bad.”_

A feeling of dread passed through Aloisia, and she thought she might vomit. _“This thing on my hand… It’s linked to the wound somehow. I don’t know how or to what extent, but I can feel it. Lana, can you-“_

She wasn’t able to finish her thought as the cell door opened to admit two women, both of whom radiated authority and willpower in the Force. The four guard surrounding her sheathed their swords, apparently at ease among their superiors. One of them wore heavier armor and had a sword on her hip and a shield on her back. The other was hooded and wore chainmail, with no weapons immediately visible, but a guarded mind that was very evidently the most dangerous thing in the room besides Aloisia herself, even if she was the only one who knew that.

The hooded woman stayed by the door, carefully observing as her armed colleague circled around Aloisia in an apparent effort to intimidate her. As she paced behind Aloisia, the woman spoke with a thick accent. “Tell me why we shouldn’t kill you now! The Conclave is destroyed. Everyone who attended is dead. Except for _you!"_

The woman hadn’t raised her voice, but she hadn’t needed to. The anger and grief was still apparent, and Aloisia felt a spike of dread pierce her heart. “The Conclave, all those people… This was the last hope for peace. Without the Divine-“

The armored woman ignored Aloisia’s words and grasped her left wrist. “Explain this,” she hissed as the mark on her hand flared to life with green fire.

“If I could explain it, I most certainly would. Unfortunately, I don’t know what this is, or how it got there-“

“You’re lying!” the accented voice snarled as she grabbed Aloisia by the collar, only to be held back by the hooded woman.

“We need her, Cassandra,” the other woman said, her accent and voice soft like velvet. Such a sweet voice had likely led many to an early grave, unsuspecting of this woman’s mental fortitude and likely a great deal of concealed weaponry. And now, Aloisia had a name for one of her captors. Now that she could properly see them both, Cassandra and the hooded woman both had an emblem in their armor: an eye wreathed in flames and pierced by a downward-facing sword. It was reminiscent of the Templar’s emblem, but different enough to pique Aloisia’s interest.

Taking a deep breath, Aloisia looked up at her captors. “I’m likely more in the dark here than you are, so ask what questions you have, and I’ll try to help.”

“Do you remember what happened?” the hooded woman asked. “How this began?”

Aloisia respected her getting straight to the point, but she found she had to concentrate hard to try and even remember the slightest details of what had happened. Like Lana said, there were some missing memories, but what she could find… “I remember running. Things were chasing me, and then… I think there was a woman.”

“A woman?”

Things were starting to come back to her, but they were vague and unclear. “She… She reached out to me, but then…” Aloisia sighed. “I’m sorry. My memory doesn’t want to cooperate with me today, and I wish it would.”

Cassandra put a friendly hand on her companion. “Go to the forward camp, Leliana. I will take her to the rift.”

The hooded woman – Leliana – left silently to whatever passed for a forward camp. Forward to, most likely, a number of spirits turned violent due to the shock of entering the material world, if Aloisia was right about the wound that had opened.

Cassandra undid the manacles on her wrists, but then bound her wrists together with simple rope. Aloisia could have escaped from the manacles with but a thought, and the rope would be no more difficult, but she’d play nice for the time being. She couldn’t risk the fear of magic working against her from these primitives who happened to outnumber her quite a bit.

Helping her to her feet, Cassandra led Aloisia up some stairs out of her cell. “It will be quickest to show you, to learn what we are up against.”

Not arguing or resisting, Aloisia followed Cassandra up the stairs and out of the building. It looked like they were in the town of Haven, and out further, towards where the Temple of Sacred Ashes had been…

There was a hole in the sky. A vast maw, glowing green, the Force visibly seeping out of the wound and onto the ground below.

“We call it ‘the Breach,'” Cassandra explained. “It’s a massive rift into the world of demons that grows larger with each passing hour. It’s not the only such rift, just the largest. All were caused by the explosion at the Conclave.”

A number of things stood out to Aloisia. First was Cassandra’s definition of the Fade as ‘the world of demons.’ She was definitely heavily biased by Chantry doctrine. That, however, was far less important compared to the knowledge that this great hole in the sky was but one of many, and that there would be other holes – rifts, Cassandra called them – forming like offspring from their larger sire. The Fade was everywhere, the Breach was here, but large and growing. So these smaller rifts could be anywhere, and they could be threatening countless innocents, totally unaware of what had happened.

The Breach in the sky flared to life, and so too did the mark on Aloisia’s hand, she bit down and winced to keep from screaming from the pain, but she still fell to her knees.

Cassandra was there in an instant, sounding far more patient than she had back in the cell. “Each time the Breach expands, your mark spreads. And it is killing you. Your mark may be the key to stopping this, but there isn’t much time.”

Wait, the mark was killing her? How did Cassandra know this? The only one who would reliably be able to diagnose this thing was someone who was familiar with it. Mages weren’t allowed to rise as high in the Chantry hierarchy as Cassandra seemed to be. Then again, Lana had mentioned that a man had helped them diagnose the mark, and had even offered it up as a solution. Who was this man, and how did he know so much about the Force on a world-threatening scale?

The way forward was clear enough. “Well, if this mark can help, and if I have anything to say about it, then let me help as best I can. I came here to protect the mage delegation, and I’ve failed in that job spectacularly. If I can make it up at all to the survivors… Please, let me do what I can.” Of course, Aloisia would do what she could regardless, but best to let Cassandra think she actually had power over her. And in a way, she did have power in the form of answers. Best to exploit that as thoroughly as possible.

“You deny that you are the cause of all of this?” Cassandra asked. “To be frank, you are our only suspect.”

“Well, I have no motive, but I do have some blanks in my memory. Whatever caused the explosion likely erased my memories of the events surrounding it. I can’t prove my guilt or my innocence, but I can help you now, if you’ll let me.” Honestly, how much goodwill did she have to offer before someone took her up on it?

Thankfully, Cassandra decided to help Aloisia to her feet and beckon her forward. “Forgive me. It is my job to seek the truth, and here I am questioning your motives. Right now, our focus needs to be on closing the Breach. I will not turn away help where I can find it.”

The two of them marched through the town, the citizens glaring at Aloisia, their anger plain to see even without the Force. “I’m guessing word of my guilt has already spread? The mass murderer who stole the only hope for peace and killed the Divine, am I right?”

“I’m afraid so,” Cassandra said, and to Aloisia’s surprise, she sounded genuine. “Such tragedy requires a villain to blame, and they have cast you in that role. If you are to prove them wrong, then we must give them a reason to hope.” Cassandra stopped and held up a small knife, which she used to cut the ropes binding Aloisia’s hands. “Come. We must test your mark on something smaller than the Breach.”

Aloisia took a moment to rub her wrists reflexively now that the harsh rope was gone. “Lead the way, soldier,” she said, immediately regretting the way she’d slipped back into a tone of command. This woman was _not_ part of her Alliance. Nobody on this planet was her ally or her friend. “My apologies for my tone. I meant that you know the terrain better than I, so please, let me follow your lead.”

Cassandra arched an eyebrow, but quickly resumed her march. “You speak as someone accustomed to giving orders. You claim to be a mercenary. Are you the head of a company that I would be familiar with?”

Aloisia couldn’t help but smile at the thought. “I once led men and women in battle, but you would not be familiar with them,” she answered honestly. Before they could travel much further, the Breach pulsed again, and Aloisia fell to her knees once more from the pain.

Cassandra was a hard woman to understand. She came to Aloisia’s side and helped her up again, almost compassionately. “The pulses are coming faster now,” she explained. That meant that they had to solve this quickly, or else Aloisia wouldn’t be able to solve anything, as the pain in her hand would be too strong to tolerate.

Aloisia had her suspicions about her own survival, but there were too many unknowns to be certain if her survival was because of her link to Lana’s spirit. “How did I survive the blast? If you know, that is,” she asked.

“Our scouts say you... stepped out of a rift, then fell unconscious. They say a woman was in the rift behind you. No one knows who she was,” Cassandra answered, her voice hushed.

Aloisia understood why. If she had stepped out of a rift, then that meant that she had physically stepped out of the Fade. The last time anyone had entered the Fade physically, not just in their dreams, had supposedly been the breach of the Golden City and the invitation of the Blight into the physical world. That was not good company to be compared to.

As the two women crossed over a stone bridge, a glowing green meteor fell from the sky. Or at least, something resembling a meteor fell form the Breach and broke the bridge beneath them. Thankfully the ground below wasn’t too far, so the fall didn’t hurt so much. Whatever flotsam had fallen from the Breach was glowing green on the ground, and a creature that could only be a demon rose up from one such piece.

“Stay behind me,” Cassandra shouted as she drew her sword and shield and moved to charge the creature. Aloisia wanted to help, but didn’t want to reveal her affinity for the Force or her lightsaber. She stood out enough as it was. All the same, if she was to fight, she’d need a weapon.

And another demon was raising out of the ground right in front of her, so Aloisia’s options were quickly becoming limited. Looking about, Aloisia saw a broken crate of equipment on the ground, and a number of short swords were among its contents. Diving into a somersault, Aloisia grabbed one such sword by the hilt and let the Force guide her movements. The demon was likely a spirit driven mad by being forced into the material world, so its behavior was erratic and easy to block and parry. It didn’t seem to have vital organs, but it had a limited amount of willpower to remain in a physical form. Once Aloisia had landed enough blows, it fell and evaporated into some form of Fade-matter.

“Drop your weapon!” And there was Cassandra, sword pointed at Aloisia, back into her role as captor.

Aloisia rolled her eyes, but slowly lowered herself to the ground and let the sword fall. “I’m sorry if my defending myself upset you, but last I checked, you need me in order to prevent the end of the world. Would you like me to allow myself to die, and to condemn everyone else you’re trying to protect in the process?”

“Wait,” Cassandra said, followed by a sigh. “You are right. I cannot guarantee your safety, and I cannot expect you to be helpless.” Cassandra picked the sword back up off the ground and handed it to Aloisia, who took it by the hilt. “I should remember that you volunteered your help.”

At the very least, Cassandra was not so proud that she couldn’t admit a mistake when she had made one. That already put her one up on the vast majority of authority figures in both the Empire and the Republic. Cassandra carried herself like a soldier, but her presence with the other woman – Leliana – implied a kind of authority beyond that of a simple infantrywoman.

The two women continued their trek towards the Breach, and more demons barred their way. Most of them were mindless, flailing things, but one breed of enemy drew Aloisia’s attention. A shimmering, translucent green spirit attacked by hurling bolts of green energy at her. Aloisia was able to block the attacks with her blade, as she closed the distance, and its physical appearance reminded her of texts she’d read about the spirits of Dathomirian witches. Of course, this wasn’t Dathomir, but perhaps there was some common ground to be found when not fighting to the death. The wisp wasn’t entirely physical, so Aloisia focused her mind to add a blade of Force energy along the edge of her metal sword, cleaving away at the spirit more effectively than with steel alone.

After another short hike up some stairs, Aloisia and Cassandra descended into the remains of what must have once been a magnificent stone structure. Ahead of them were two men fighting off attacking spirits, and hanging in the air was a conflux of the energies of the Force. It was in a state of flux, and Aloisia recognized it as a wound, smaller than the Breach, but a similar wound. A rift that she could possibly, hopefully close.

But first, she had to clear the area. She noticed one man fighting with a staff, using magic. The other was using a remarkably fast-firing crossbow that made Aloisia yearn to see a blaster, if only to feel a connection to home.

Once the demons had been dispatched, a hand closed on Aloisia’s left wrist. “Quickly! Before more come through!” a man said.

Before she could spare him a thought, before she could spare a thought to the immense power in his hand, she had to think about the energies in her own hand that he was helping to maneuver, to channel, into the rift. His use of the Force guided Aloisia, and she quickly saw how he was manipulating the ritual seared into her flesh. Not wanting to give away her perceptions just yet, she let him guide her actions rather than taking control herself. Not just yet.

And then, with a snap, the rift was gone. The small wound in the Force of this world was gone, and now that it was, Aloisia took a good look at the man who had guided the ritual. He was bald, and his pointed ears marked him as an elf by this world’s standards. He was quite a bit taller than any elf Aloisia had met to date. He had no tattoos worn by the nomadic Dalish tribes, and his dress was far more practical for combat than any elf born into a human alienage would ever be allowed to wear. And how he felt in the Force…

“What did you do?” Aloisia asked, though what she really wanted to know what ‘What in the void are you?’

The man simply smiled, his face a mask of humility. “I did nothing. The credit is yours.”

Whomever this man was – and he was dangerous, that much was certain – he would have to wait until the Breach was dealt with. “So, this mark can close the Breach,” Aloisia speculated.

“Possibly,” the man said. “Whatever magic opened the Breach also placed that mark upon your hand.” He spoke with such certainty that Aloisia was convinced that this plain-looking man was far more familiar with the magic involved than anyone here had any right to be. Whether he was actually responsible… It was too soon to tell.

“I theorized that the mark might be able to close the rifts that have opened in the Breach’s wake, and it seems I was correct.” Oh, Aloisia hated this man's arrogance. He spoke with a care to sound humble, but he seemed far too proud of his knowledge that just happened to be the key to saving the world. As if reading her mind, he continued, “It seems you hold the key to our salvation.”

“Good to know,” a rougher male voice said from behind Aloisia, and she turned to see the crossbow-bearer, and she noticed that he was a dwarf. “And here I thought we’d be ass-deep in demons forever.” Now this man, Aloisia liked already. “Varric Tethras,” he introduced himself. “Rogue, storyteller, and occasionally unwelcome tagalong.” The last was said with a wink at Cassandra, and Aloisia could practically feel the soldier groan in annoyance from behind her.

Smiling, Aloisia walked up to Varric. “Finally, a proper introduction. Nice to meet you, Varric. Since nobody’s yet asked for my name, it’s Aloisia Kallig. And I have to say, that crossbow of yours is a remarkable piece of work. I’ve never seen one like it. It’s quite possibly the most technologically impressive thing I’ve yet seen here in Thedas.”

Varric let out a hearty laugh. “So, our glorious savior has an appreciation for the finer things in life. Oh, I like you. Yes, Bianca truly is special, and she’ll be a remarkable help in the valley, Red.”

“Absolutely not,” Cassandra said, stepping forward. “Your help is appreciated, Varric, but-“

“Have you been in the valley lately, Seeker?” Varric asked, and he gave a title that Aloisia could apply to Cassandra. “Your soldiers aren’t in control anymore. You need me.”

“You’re right, Varric,” Aloisia said. “We need all the help we can get. Cassandra, you need to stop turning away help just because you seem not to like where it’s coming from.”

A simple “Ugh” was all that Cassandra was able to reply with.

The suspicious elf chose that moment to introduce himself. “My name is Solas, if there are to be introductions. I am pleased to see you still live.”

 _Oh, how terribly considerate of you,_ Aloisia thought silently.

Varric was there to translate the asshole’s intentions. “He means, ‘I kept that mark from killing you while you slept.”

So, he was familiar enough with this magic to keep it from killing her. She didn’t like the man, but she apparently owe him a debt. “You seem to be quite familiar with it,” Aloisia said, keeping her voice carefully neutral.

“Solas is an apostate,” Cassandra said by way of explanation. Apparently, a mage outside of Chantry control was all the explanation the Seeker needed to be convinced that this Solas was here to help with the thing on her hand.

“Technically, all mages are now apostates, Cassandra” Solas countered. Aloisia had to give him that. From just surface impressions, Cassandra was a Chantry loyalist caught up in something bigger than she could understand, Solas was a dangerous mage with hidden motives, and Varric was quite possibly what he appeared to be, but he was still able to hold his own amongst hordes of demons. She couldn’t let her guard down around any of them.

“My travels have allowed me to learn much of the Fade. Far beyond that of any Circle mage,” Solas added. “I came to offer whatever help I can give with the Breach. If it is not closed, we are all doomed, regardless of origin.” So he was a traveler of sorts. Maybe a nomad. Did that mean he simply slept and dreamed in random locations, or did it mean something greater? Aloisia had come to realize that her lucid dreams in the Fade were an anomaly, but she had managed to keep knowledge of her abilities to herself. If Solas had similar abilities, then a nomadic existence would make a good cover story.

But cover for what? And why? Fear of magic was the norm, so why risk coming out to a hub of Chantry activity? He surely hadn’t come in the wake of the Breach to provide aid. It couldn’t have been that long ago since it formed, so he must have already been close at hand. But why?

Aloisia impressions of the man were that he was a proud man, so she would appeal to his ego. “That’s a commendable attitude,” she said with a polite nod.

“Merely a sensible one,” he countered. “Although sense seems to be in short supply these days. Cassandra,” he said, turning to the Seeker, “the magic involved here is unlike any I have seen. Your prisoner is a mage, but I find it difficult to imagine _any_ mage having such power.”

“The prisoner? A mage?” Cassandra asked, eyes wide.

There was no hiding it now. “The prisoner has a name. And yes, I can use what you call magic. I decided to rely on my skills with a blade rather than risk the fearful violence that tends to follow mages, particularly from Chantry soldiers. Can you blame me for that, Seeker Cassandra?”

Thankfully, Cassandra surprised her again and let out a breath of resignation. “No, I cannot blame you for such fears, Miss Kallig. With your skills with a sword, it would make sense not to draw attention to yourself. But if we are to close the Breach, we will need you to bring all your skills to bear. This crisis is larger than any of us. If the world is to survive, you must survive. And for you to survive, we cannot afford the luxury of appealing to closed minds.”

Varric chuckled at that. “Never thought I’d see the day, Seeker. Not that I’m not happy, but all the same… Bianca’s excited. Shall we get this show on the road?”

Aloisia smiled despite herself. She was free to use the Force, and she had two allies for the time being. All she had to worry about was the secretive man who knew far too much about the magic that was tearing the world apart. But she could worry about him after the world was out of imminent danger of ending. One thing at a time.


	3. Commander

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the Chantry's forces scattered and frightened in the wake of the tragic end to the Conclave, Aloisia Kallig assumes a mantle that she had thought to have left behind only months ago.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A few sentences are taken verbatim from the opening segments of Dragon Age: Inquisition. Also, I had to think about the title of this chapter. Before the current title, it was Assuming Command, and even that was after I had the silly idea to emulate Mass Effect 2 and call this chapter 'Assuming Direct Control.' I'll try not to have many references to other works, if any, in this story. I may not always succeed, and there may already be at least one reference to the original Knights of the Old Republic in an upcoming chapter, though that one is for dramatic effect. Regardless, I just wanted to share that train of thought with you all. Enjoy the chapter. ^_^

As Aloisia and her three companions made their way up a hill towards the forward camp, Varric decided to try and make conversation. “So, are you innocent?” he asked.

To be fair, it was a legitimate question. “I don’t remember.”

“That’ll get you every time,” Varric chided with a smile in his voice. “Should’ve spun a story.”

“That’s what you would have done,” Cassandra bit back. Aloisia guessed there was some history between the two of them, likely involving an outlandish tale told by Varric.

“It’s more believable,” the dwarf countered. “And less prone to result in premature execution.”

“Perhaps at the very start,” Aloisia opined. “But later on? When the truth starts coming to light? Better that your story be one that you can stick to regardless of whatever obstacles you face. The truth works surprisingly well like that. Go figure. And some people consider lying to be a form of betrayal. And if you lie to someone who has it out for traitors…”

Aloisia couldn’t help but think of all the people who had betrayed her over the years. Rarely out of spite for her, but everyone had their own motives. Zash had wanted to live forever. Nomar Organa was a righteous hypocrite. Her quartet of ghosts had wanted to assert control. Malgus had wanted a stronger Empire. Senya couldn’t follow through on her commitment. Theron did what he had to do, though it cost Aloisia the Eternal Fleet. The Empire and the Republic, both full of self-serving, power-hungry hypocrites…

“Hey!”

Aloisia snapped out of her reverie. “You okay in there, Red? You sort of drifted off there.”

That was Varric, and Aloisia decided again that she liked him. “Yes, Varric. Sorry about that. As for spinning stories, let’s just say that if you try to spin a story to hide the truth from me, then I will be the one who will exact an apology. And I might not be as nice about it as Cassandra. Are we clear?”

To his credit, Varric wasn’t smiling. “You’ve been through some tough shit, haven’t you, Red?”

Aloisia allowed herself a small smile. “You could say that. But enough about that. Come on, now. There’s another rift close by. I can feel it.”

“If you’re to use your magic, Aloisia, will you not need a staff?” Cassandra asked.

“In fact, I will not need a staff. What you call magic… I learned it differently than anyone else I’ve met, and I was here to help the mage delegation. It may seem strange to you, but try not to lose your tempers, please?”

“What do you call it, if not magic?” Solas asked.

She did not want to give this arrogant man any more answers than she could help. “This is a conversation for another time. Come, the rift is right there. To arms!”

As demons came at them, Aloisia kept her metal sword up in her right hand as she let loose a torrent of Force lightning out of her left. Those demons that didn’t collapse form her initial onslaught, she grabbed with the Force and lifted them off the ground, only to pound them back into the earth with as much force as she could muster. Seeing a downed tree near the rift, Aloisia lifted it up with the Force and rammed it into the demons until they dissipated into nothingness.

With the area clear, Aloisia raised her hand and let the memory of what Solas had done guide her as she navigated the ritual in the mark and used it to snap shut the rift.

“Maker’s balls, Red!” Varric said. “What kind of magic was that?”

Aloisia shrugged. “Nothing special, really. The demons are dead, and the way is clear, right?”

“Indeed,” Cassandra said, though Aloisia could hear the concern in her voice. “The rift is gone!” Cassandra called to whomever was on the other side of the door barring their path, most probably shut to keep the demons out when the rift had appeared. “Open the gate!”

A male soldier answered, “Right away, Lady Cassandra.”

So Cassandra was either a noblewoman or else a soldier of some special rank. Perhaps a Chantry enforcer of some kind? Regardless, her word opened the gates for them, and a properly supplied forward camp awaited them.

Aloisia spotted Leliana up ahead, and she seemed to be arguing with a man in a Chantry habit. So, he wasn’t a priest, given that all Chantry clergy were women, but he might hold some other role. Important enough to be here, but not important enough to have been close to the Divine when the explosion claimed the Conclave.

“Ah, here they come,” the Chantry man said, his voice full of disdain.

“You made it,” Leliana said, the relief in her voice indicating that she might be on Aloisia’s side. “Chancellor Roderick, this is-“

“I know who she is,” Roderick sneered.

“Oh, really?” Aloisia said, sheathing her sword and crossing her arms across her chest. “And who am I?”

“The impertinence!” he spat. “As Grand Chancellor of the Chantry, I hereby order you to take this criminal to Val Royeaux to face execution.”

Aloisia felt Cassandra getting riled up behind her, but Aloisia was done being led about. If she was the only one with the power to save this world, then she would speak for herself. “No one will be taking me anywhere, as I am no criminal. I am your only hope. As we fought our way here, risking our lives, we came across two rifts created in the wake of the Breach. Small ones, yes, but we managed to seal them. Or rather, _I_ managed to seal them, and the only way I was able to do so was with this thing seared into my hand. If you have any sort of plan to seal the Breach, then I welcome any help you can provide. But if all you can do is point fingers at forces you don’t understand, then you are less than useless. You are a hindrance to saving this world, and I will not suffer you to stand in my way.

“Leliana, was it? If you would be so kind, please have some of your men escort the Chancellor away from the front lines, for his own safety and protection. I fear a civilian won’t be safe here for much longer, if at all right now.”

Leliana’s eyes went wide, though not as wide as the Chancellor’s. The hooded woman looked to Cassandra, and Aloisia looked at her as well. The seeker gave a small nod of her head, and Aloisia knew she had won. “Harper, Cortland, please escort Chancellor Roderick back to Haven. Make sure he arrives safely and unharmed.”

“Yes, Sister Nightingale,” one of the soldiers said. “Please come with us, Chancellor.”

Roderick tried to protest until the two scouts had each taken him by either arm and began dragging him back towards the safety of the village.

Leliana turned her gaze back on Aloisia. “You are not at all what I expected. But did you speak the truth?”

“She did, Leliana,” Cassandra said. “We fought our way here, closing two rifts in the process. Also, the prisoner-“

Aloisia cleared her throat.

“Also, _Miss Kallig_ is not just a swordswoman, but a mage. I have never seen a mage with such powers, but I also believe that she is our only chance of closing the Breach,” Cassandra said.

“Solas said that he doubts that any mage could have opened the Breach,” Aloisia offered. “In my experience, however, a powerful enough individual can do many things far worse than the Breach provided they are patient enough and ruthless enough to accumulate the needed power. If such a being is responsible for the Breach, then I would feel no shame in being afraid.”

Aloisia took a deep breath. “You have questions for me, but they can wait. Right now, we need to seal the Breach, or at least stop it from growing. You know the terrain. How do we get close enough to do what needs to be done?”

“A direct charge, a straight line from here to the temple is the fastest route,” Cassandra offered. “We will have support from our soldiers, though there will be resistance.”

“A safer course would be to have our soldiers charge as a distraction while we go through the mountains,” Leliana proposed.

“We lost contact with an entire squad on that route,” Cassandra countered. “It’s too dangerous.”

It was a simple choice. “We don’t know how many rifts have opened in the Breach’s wake. We can’t sacrifice soldiers just as this campaign is beginning. We charge forward, giving our troops as much support we can. And this mark of mine is truly the only hope of fixing all of this, then they’d best get used to seeing me in the field. You’ll find my methods unorthodox, but if you want to win this war, then it is best that they know who’s leading them from the start.”

“Best they know who is leading them?” Leliana echoed. “You presume that mantle already?”

“And why not?” Aloisia countered. “If there were someone else who could solve this problem, then I would answer to them. If it helps, think of me as a vital asset that you need to keep alive. That asset simply has a mind of her own, and she has experience with command. Believe me, I never wanted to find myself in such a position again, but now that I’m here, I’m going to what it takes to get the job done. Do you take issue with any of this, Sister Nightingale?" she challenged, using the title that Leliana’s own people had used for her.

Leliana’s eyes narrowed in clear disdain. “You make points that I cannot refute, but you assume this mantle with too much ease for me to be comfortable with. We will do what we can to stem the tide of chaos, and then we will have words at greater length.”

“I would expect nothing less,” Aloisia said. Leliana was a formidable woman, even when faced with chaos all around her. “Until then, ready the troops to move out. Cassandra? I believe that’s your field?”

Cassandra sighed. She probably wanted to argue, but was too tired to do so. “Very well, Miss Kallig.”

_“Commander_ Kallig,” Aloisia corrected. “That was my title before I came here. It was a responsibility that I did not take likely. If I’m to assume responsibility for the lives of everyone helping us to get to the Breach, I can’t just be ‘Miss’ anyone. Or do you think your soldiers will risk their lives on the word of a widow with no military rank, or any other sort of title at all?”

Leliana chuckled. “I can’t wait to see the look on Cullen’s face.”

Cassandra let out an exhausted grunt, which almost seemed to be her signature catchphrase so far. “Very well, Commander. We will charge towards the Temple.”

“We’ll advance as quickly as we can,” Aloisia corrected. “We’ll try not to lose anyone if we can help it. We’ll need everyone we can get once we get to the center of it all.”

Cassandra looked around at the soldiers surrounding them, who seemed awestruck at the scene unfolding before them. “You heard the Commander! We move on the Temple! Ready yourselves!”

That got them moving. Weapons were sharpened, armor was secured, formations assembled. Within short order, they were ready to advance. Aloisia turned to Varric and Solas. “How are you two keeping up?”

Solas’s face was inscrutable. “You take the lives of simple infantrymen and hold them in high regard. It’s an admirable quality in a leader.”

“A leader. That’s for damn sure,” Varric said. “I’ve seen my fair share of stuck-up assholes with no common sense, but I’ve almost never seen anyone cut through all that bullshit as fast as you did, Red. You’re kind of scary, you know that?”

“Oh, you haven’t seen my scary face yet, Varric,” Aloisia said with a smile. “If it makes you feel better, you’re quite possibly my favorite person in Thedas so far. I think I want to hear some of your stories when we have a moment.”

“Am I allowed to say no?” Varric asked, and his tone was only half-joking.

“Of course, you are, silly,” Aloisia said gently, hoping to soothe his nerves. “I may be taking charge, but I’m not about to shoot you full of lightning if you don’t obey my every whim. I’m not like…”

“Not like what, Red?” Varric asked.

“I have my own stories to share,” Aloisia said quietly, banishing thoughts of far crueler Sith to the back of her mind for now. “Cassandra! How are we coming along?”

“We are ready, Commander! We move on your signal.”

“Well, Cassandra handed over control faster than I ever thought she would,” Varric said. “She actually does scare me, and you can order her about just like that.”

“I’m a people person, Varric,” Aloisia said with a smile. “All units, forward march! Watch your peripheries and cover your fellows! We’re in this to fight another day. No one is to make a martyr of themselves, do you hear me?!”

An indistinct shout of approval went up from among the troops, and they advanced on the Temple. Demons charged at them. “Steady! Shields up! Swords out.” It would work better with spears, or lightsaber-pikes, but Zakuulan tactics might see them through this particular march.

The battlefield widened as a rift came into sight. “Soldiers, make way! Cassandra, Varric, Solas: you’re with me! Everyone else: cover us as we seal that rift!”

Leading the charge to the rift, Aloisia lifted demons up with the Force and tossed them aside before shooting them with streams of lightning. A soldier to her right had a demon coming up behind him. “Soldier!” she shouted as she lifted up the demon in the air. “Your target!”

The soldier had his orders and stabbed the target held in the air, looking back at Aloisia once it had dissipated into nothing.

“Well done. Keep at it.”

“Y-yes, ma’am!” the young man said.

They did keep at it until finally, the rift felt vulnerable to her mark. Raising her left hand, Aloisia channeled the Force through the ritual patterns and snapped the rift shut. As she did so, she couldn’t help but feel a fresh sense of fear. The last time she had used a weapon she didn’t understand, it had been her flagship being turned against her fleet because she didn’t understand that it was actually the body of an Iokathi god-machine. This mark was dangerous and unknown, and she had to rectify the latter part of that before it was too late.

“Sealed, as before,” Solas said with patronizing approval. “You are becoming quite proficient at this.”

“Let’s hope it works on the big one,” Varric said.

“I second that, Varric,” Aloisia agreed.

A blonde man with well-groomed hair wearing ornamental furs approached them. “Lady Cassandra. You managed to close the rift. Well done.”

Cassandra sighed. “Do not congratulate me, Commander. This was-“

Ah. So this was the Commander of their forces up until now. One of them would need a new title.

“The true commander,” Aloisia said with a polite nod. “I’m going to need a new rank, it seems. Aloisia Kallig, once prisoner, now your only hope for survival. I’ve assumed command of the operation. Status on the approach from here to the temple, Commander?”

“Is that so?” the commander said, crossing his arms. “We’ve lost a lot of people in the time you took to get here.”

“Well, I’m here now. So if you have complaints, then save them for later. We have a job to do. Now, I asked you for a status report on the remaining path to the temple, Commander. This mark on my hand is the only thing we know of that might seal the Breach, so if I’m going to stand a chance, I need to know what’s in my way. Am I clear, soldier?”

The commander simply scowled before answering. “The way to the temple should be clear. Leliana and her scouts have gone on ahead. I’ll gather our remaining forces and hold this position from any threats from the rear.”

Aloisia nodded. “Very good, Commander. As you were. Cassandra, let’s go.” Without waiting, Aloisia strode forward towards the Temple of Sacred Ashes. Some of the architecture was beginning to look somewhat familiar, but it was all in ruins and debris.

“Cassandra,” Aloisia said, her voice soft, “I scouted the Temple before the explosion. Seeing it like this… It’s more real for me now that I can see it up close. Whoever did this will pay, I swear it. For Justinia and the peace she died fighting to bring about.”

“Thank you, Commander.” Cassandra’s voice almost broke. “It is good to hear that you care. Though I fear that this is only the beginning.”

Moving forward, they found a courtyard with an active rift in the center, but it wasn’t spewing forth any demons at the moment. And far above their heads was the Breach itself. “I don’t know if I can affect the Breach from this distance. I’d have to get further up, and I don’t know if I can do that and close the Breach at the same time.”

From behind them, Leliana came forward, a number of scouts in tow. “You’re here! Thank the Maker.”

“Leliana,” Cassandra instructed, “Have your men take up positions around the temple.”

The two women clearly knew each other and their respective forces better than Aloisia did, so she didn’t interject herself when they went about dividing their forces as they knew best. Satisfied with Leliana’s movements, Cassandra came back to Aloisia. “This is your chance to end this. Are you ready?”

“Like I said, I don’t know that I can seal the Breach itself from down here. But this rift in the courtyard here seems linked to it somehow. Solas, you seem to know quite a bit about these rifts. Your thoughts?” She hated turning to the man for help, but better to let him think he was a vital and invaluable part of this lest she tip her hand.

“This rift was the first, and it is the key,” he answered, and Aloisia had to wonder how he knew this rift was the first. He would have had to see it form, or else be familiar with how such rifts acted. And these rifts were hardly common before now. “Seal it,” Solas continued, “And perhaps we seal the Breach.”

“Then let’s find a way down,” Cassandra said to the team as a whole before settling her eyes on Aloisia. “And be careful.”

Nodding her affirmation and respect, Aloisia worked her way around an intact terrace, looking for a path that would lead down into the courtyard without requiring a jump that would prove fatal for someone without the Force.

As they walked, a deep, male voice echoed from the air around them. “Now is the hour of our victory,” it said. “Bring forth the sacrifice.”

“What are we hearing?” Cassandra asked.

“At a guess,” Solas answered, “the person who created the Breach.”

Aloisia didn’t trust Solas, but that didn’t mean he was necessarily wrong. The wound in the Force was wide open here, so the Fade was reflecting the material world more clearly. These words might be the events immediately preceding the Breach.

As they rounded a corner, Aloisia couldn’t help but recoil from a feeling in the Force. She saw a glowing red rock, but it wasn’t just a rock. It was a violation and a corruption. It reeked of the Dark Side, almost as if it had manifested itself physically into the world. It felt oddly familiar, but Aloisia couldn’t pinpoint exactly what that familiarity was at the moment.

“You know this stuff is red lyrium, Seeker,” Varric was telling Cassandra. And that changed everything. Since she had arrived, Aloisia had come to know that mages relied on lyrium to fuel their magic, but what the people of this world knew as lyrium, the Sith and the Jedi knew as kyber. It wasn’t just a form of stone, but a living manifestation of the Force. For it to be corrupted like this…

“Ah! It’s evil,” Varric said. “Whatever you do, don’t touch it.” She’d have to ask Varric about his past experiences with this ‘red’ lyrium, because he was right about it.

The menacing voice echoed once more, “Keep the sacrifice still.”

Then an elderly woman’s voice cried out, “Someone! Help me!”

Cassandra gasped audibly. “That is Divine Justinia’s voice!”

Aloisia tried to keep her thoughts clear as she found a worn away path of rock that descended gently into the courtyard. After a short hop off a ledge, they were right next to the green crystal-like rift.

Now the Fade showed them not only voices, but images depicting the events they had just been hearing. Justinia was suspended in mid-air, her arms extended out at either side. A large, spindly silhouette loomed over her.

“Someone! Help me!” Justinia’s voice cried again.

A visage of Aloisia suddenly approached from the side. “Release her!” she demanded, but it was merely an echo of a past event. So, she had been here. More importantly, she heard a very distinctive _snap-hiss_ that Aloisia knew was her igniting her lightsaber. She would not have done so unless the threat was incredibly dire.

“Blessed Andraste?” Justinia’s voice said, as if calling out in hope.

“We have an intruder,” the enemy of the vision proclaimed as the silhouette pointed a finger at the visage of Aloisia. “Kill her. Now!”

And then the voices went silent.

“You _were_ there!” Cassandra shouted. “And the Divine… She called you… What are we seeing?! Is this vision true?”

“I still don’t remember,” Aloisia said. “But I recognize the sound of my weapon. I wouldn’t use it unless I thought the situation dangerous enough to go all-out, as it were.”

Solas moved to examine the crystal-like rift. “Echoes of what happened here,” he explained. “The Fade bleeds into this place. This rift is not sealed, but it closed, albeit temporarily. I believe that with the mark, the rift can be opened, and then sealed properly and safely. However, opening the rift will likely attract attention from the other side.”

Oh, how Aloisia wanted to show that smug little man up by sealing the rift without following his advice, but she couldn’t let her own pride get the better of her. For better or for worse, she’d need Solas’s expertise going forward, but she’d examine every word he said with detailed scrutiny.

“That means demons,” Cassandra called to her soldiers. “Stand ready!” And her men followed orders and took up positions and readied their weapons. If she survived this encounter, Aloisia was going to have to establish a proper chain of command, but for now, she had little choice but to follow Solas’s instruction.

She reached out with the mark, and she felt the threads of the rift. It was like a zipper that had gotten stuck on a notch. It had to be yanked open and then sealed shut. Well, the situation was what it was, so there was no use bitching about it. Aloisia tugged, and the rift opened.

And out of the rift came a monstrosity of a creature. It stood on two legs, hand two arms, it had horns on its head and it crackled with lightning. It seemed like a product of Sith alchemy, but it was merely a powerful demon. All the same, if it wielded lightning itself, then Aloisia’s own lightning might not be enough to harm it. It felt vaguely like a terentatek and other similar creatures that resisted the Force.

All the same, a judicious application of power could wear down most beings, even those resistant to the Force. Aloisia let loose with Force lightning, but to little effect. Seeing the large demon attack with lightning of its own, a change in tactics seemed in order. Aloisia ripped boulders out of the ground and hurled them at the demon, which merely cackled as it formed a protective shell of armor around itself.

Its hide was too thick. This was going nowhere. Aloisia wasn’t about to give up, but she was running out of ideas.

“ _Aloy, love,”_ Lana said within her soul. _“I’ve done my best not to distract you, but the demon is drawing its strength from the Fade, from its home. Disrupt the connection, and you may weaken it enough to strike.”_

_“Thank you, beloved. It’s worth a shot.”_ Aloisia reached her left hand out towards the rift, felt the threads connecting it to the demon, and she pulled as hard as she could to sever the connection, if only temporarily.

Sure enough, the monster had fallen to its knees. But in the time it had taken her to figure out this tactic, soldiers had died. There were bodies all about, and Aloisia knew that it had to end now.

“Everyone! Stand clear!” Aloisia shouted, her voice a command that brooked no disobedience. She strode towards the demon, her pace quickening as she went, her right hand called her lightsaber from her belt, and she leaped, using the Force to propel herself up onto the demon’s back as she ignited her weapon. A blade of fiery orange light erupted from the hilt, followed by a small, flaming ‘cross guard.’ Without a word, Aloisia drove the blade into the back of the demon’s neck, hoping that it had some sort of anatomy similar to a human or elf or whatever other things lived on this awful world.

The demon seemed to weaken, and Aloisia leaped off its back as it fell to the ground. Just to be sure, Aloisia threw her lightsaber at the demon, driving the blade into its neck and slicing into its body until it finally gave up and died, and then she summoned her weapon back to her side, disengaged the blade, and reattached it to her belt.

Finally, the rift was vulnerable. Reaching out with her left hand, Aloisia pulled at it. It resisted, trying to pull back, but Aloisia Kallig was no simple mage. She was the heir to Tulak Hord, she was Darth Imperius, she was the slayer of the both the Dread Masters and the god-machines of Iokath, and she was the final end of the Immortal Sith Emperor. This simple rift… This was nothing.

Aloisia tugged at the rift and it snapped shut, sending shockwaves up to the Breach itself. She’d done, it she could feel it. The Breach might not be closed, but could it maybe stop growing? She turned back to look at Cassandra and Varric, and she smiled a genuine white grin. This wasn’t so bad after all.

That was the last thing Aloisia Kallig thought before she fainted from exhaustion. Lana’s spirit merely chuckled at her beloved’s persistence. They had a long road ahead of them, but they were off to a good start.


	4. The Blade From Beyond

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aloisia Kallig wakes from sealing the rift to find herself the only chance for the salvation of the world. So, the same as always. Just the one world this time. How hard can it be? Right?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As has been and will be the case with this story, some dialogue is lifted from Dragon Age: Inquisition. If it's at all recognizable, it probably didn't come from me. Everything else, however, I hope will combine with all of that to provide an engaging story. With that said, enjoy the chapter.

As her mind began to awaken from slumber, Aloisia decided not to open her eyes just yet. She was still exhausted, and so she clung to the vestiges of sleep like a child trying to force herself back to bed once the sun had risen. All the same, it gave her a chance to reflect on what had happened. Her last waking memory had been attempting to seal the Breach. At the very least, she’d managed to seal the rift directly beneath it.

The first rift, and the key. That was what Solas had called it. And now Aloisia remembered the elf who knew too much, and she remembered that she’d taken measures once she’d fallen into the dreamscape of the Fade. She could see the Breach from her Odessen-island, and she’d tried her best to move her personal slice of the Fade away from the Breach, but she’d only had limited success. It was far away enough not to draw the inhabitants of her island up and into it, but close enough for worry.

With both the Breach to worry about and the possibility of intruders on her dreamscape, Aloisia and Lana had traveled where they could in the Fade and searched out spirits of sentineling. After some careful negotiation, they had convinced the few spirits they had found to patrol the space around the Odessen-island and keep intruders away. Said spirits had appeared to both Aloisia and to Lana as Imperial Royal Guards, but they had assured the two Sith that they would look different to anyone else who approached them based on their own experiences. Such was the nature of the Fade.

All of that had taken place while Aloisia had been asleep, and it felt like it had been quite a while. As she sat up in what turned out to be a soft bed in a wooden cabin, Aloisia realized that she was clad only in simple, light brown clothing, but even these garments were clearly tailor-made with care that spoke to a certain degree of elegance. A look to the side showed her armor hanging on a stand, and her and Lana’s lightsabers placed on a small stand next to the armor.

After too long, Aloisia opened her eyes for real and began to sit up in her bed, only to notice what must have been a servant girl drop a box of some sort and let out a frightened gasp. “I didn’t know you were awake, I swear!” the poor girl said, clearly terrified. A brief look at her ears told Aloisia that she was an elf, and the lack of tattoos indicated that she was likely not Dalish, and therefore probably used to being mistreated by humans.

“It’s all right,” Aloisia said, nudging a bit with the Force to project an aura of calm and peace. “You did nothing wrong. Please, just try to relax. What’s your name?”

Thankfully, the servant girl allowed herself a few deep breaths, but she still looked afraid. And then she fell to her knees. “I beg your forgiveness and your blessing, my lady. I am but a humble servant. Oh, sorry, that’s wrong! You asked my name. It’s Tianna, my lady.”

This fear was not something that could be overcome with a gentle nudge from the Force. Aloisia hated being treated like she was above everyone, at least from a societal standpoint. If orders had to be given for a campaign, that was one thing. Being put on a pedestal due to being a Lord or a Darth was different. And after defeating Vaylin, the people of Zakuul had insisted on a coronation ceremony for her, though Aloisia never assumed the title of Empress.

All the same, those experiences had taught her how to act in this situation. “All is well, never you fear. Rise, Tianna, and tell me what had transpired since the battle at the Temple of Sacred Ashes.”

Slowly and tentatively, the poor elf woman got to her feet. “Th-thank you, my lady. You were brought back here. Back to Haven, that is, after the battle. They say the Breach stopped growing, just like the mark on your hand, my lady. Everyone’s been talking about it for the last three days.”

That answered a few questions. Without looking, Aloisia could feel the mark still etched into her hand, but it wasn’t hurting nearly as much as before. And whatever she had done to that rift had knocked her out for three days of rest. “At least it’s not another five years,” she couldn’t help but mutter to herself.

“My lady?”

Aloisia shook her head and actually got out of bed, standing up straight. “Nothing, Tianna. And thank you for letting me know about what has happened while I was asleep. What of Seeker Cassandra and Sister Leliana? Are they alive and well?”

“Y-yes, my lady. They are. Lady Cassandra’s in the chantry, with the Lord Chancellor. She wanted to see you. ‘At once,’ she said.”

The poor girl was far too scared for Aloisia’s taste, but she didn’t think she could help that now. “You’ve done more than enough, Tianna. Please resume whatever other duties you have. I’m just going to don my armor and I’ll be on my way to the chantry. Please, be at ease.”

“Yes, my lady! As you say,” Tianna said before beating a hasty retreat out of the small cabin that served as Aloisia’s temporary quarters.

 _“I recognize that poor girl, Lana,”_ Aloisia thought to her wife’s spirit. _“Once upon a time, that was me. Before I was taken to Korriban, I lived and died by the whims of my owners. Tianna might not be a slave by law, but she’s a slave to her own fears, and most likely to society’s whims. We’ll need to do something about this.”_

 _“One thing at a time, my love,”_ Lana answered. _“There’s still a literal gaping maw in the sky to deal with. And as we seek to solve this problem, we’ll surely run into others along the way. I wish I could tell you that you can save everyone, but it would be a lie.”_

Aloisia knew that, and she hated it. All the same, she did have a job ahead of her. She donned her armor and affixed the two lightsabers to her belt. Espying her reflection in a window, Aloisia looked at her long, flowing red hair and came to a decision. _“When I get the chance, I’m going to cut my hair,”_ she decided. _“You’ll think me silly, Lana, but I want to cut my hair short and style it after you. I just want to be able to look at my reflection and see something from both of us. I want my face to project the reality, that we are one and the same now.”_

_“You are silly, beloved, but hardly because of this. I’m certain that if I were in your position, I would want the same. It may be a matter of some small vanity, but such imperfections make us who we are.”_

_“Hmm. Next time you get on my case, I’ll remind you that my imperfections are part of my charm,”_ Aloisia thought with a chuckle as she did a final check of her armor. _“All right. Time to see what the world is like three days later.”_

Opening the door to her cabin, Aloisia felt her breath hitch in her throat as she saw a crowd of people waiting for her. Directly in front of her were two fully-armored men – their chest armor marking them as Templars – saluting her with their right hands closed over their hearts, and behind each of those two were rows of many other men and women, a good number of them saluting in the same fashion.

This wasn’t the kind of salute that expected a reply. This was a display of respect and awe. It was familiar enough to her past addresses to the Alliance, and so Aloisia made sure to hold herself high and proud as she walked through the parted crowd. As she passed people, she caught whispers.

“That’s her! That’s Blessed Andraste, reborn to save us all.”

“It doesn’t work like that! Andraste wouldn’t leave the Maker’s side. They’ve sent their daughter to aid us. We haven’t been abandoned after all.”

“Are you sure? I heard that Andraste will return, and she sent a herald to bear her Blade against the demons.”

The people weren’t just looking to her for hope, but they were actually deifying her, and that was terrifying. Aloisia had met things that claimed to be gods, and they had all proven to be nothing more than beings of immense power that had to be stopped before their power destroyed everything she had dedicated herself to protecting. She would not be a god. She would not allow herself to be such a monster.

All the same, she kept her head held high as she marched ever so slightly faster towards the large building that had to be the chantry. Aloisia had read that houses of worship here in Thedas were also built to be sturdy to serve as refuges in case of attack. It was a testament to the Maker’s mercy, or so the common folk would read into it, but it was also practical. The most influential people would gather there, and they would be ready to offer protection to any who needed it.

Pushing open the large double-doors of the Chantry, Aloisia found the main hall empty, so she closed the doors behind her to keep the heat in the building before making her way down the hall towards a room in the back where she heard raised voices.

“I do not believe that she is guilty,” Cassandra could be heard, as if in protest.

“That is not for you to decide,” the Chantry man, Roderick, argued. “Your duty is to serve the Chantry.”

“My duty,” Cassandra rebutted harshly, “is to serve the principles on which the Chantry was founded. As is yours.”

Aloisia’s respect for Cassandra immediately went up, and she chose that moment to open the door and present herself to the Seeker as requested. A pair of Templar guards flanked the door as she entered, and in the middle of the room was a table around which Cassandra, Roderick, and Leliana were clearly in the middle of a heated debate.

Roderick immediately scowled and pointed at her. “Chain her!” he ordered the guards. “I want her prepared for travel to the capital for trial.”

“Disregard that,” Cassandra said almost casually, if tersely. “And leave us.”

The two soldiers saluted, clenching their right fists over their hearts, and then left the room and closed the door behind them.

“You walk a dangerous line, Seeker,” Roderick warned her.

“The Breach is stable, but it is still a threat,” Cassandra hissed. “I will not ignore it.”

Aloisia decided that now was as good a moment as any to interject herself into this talk. “I did my best to close the Breach. I managed to stop it from growing, but I’ll need to try again if we’re to close it entirely. As to how we manage that… I’m open to suggestions.”

That only seemed to enrage Roderick further. “You are the one responsible for all of this! And you dare presume to offer help?!”

“Have a care, Chancellor,” Cassandra warned. “The Breach is not the only threat we face.”

“Someone was behind the explosion at the Conclave,” Leliana said, her eyes narrowed in accusation. “Someone Most Holy did not expect. Perhaps they died with the others… Or have allies that yet live.”

Roderick took a step back as the full weight of Leliana’s words hit him. “I,” he said disbelievingly, “am a suspect?!”

“You,” Leliana agreed with a withering glare, “and many others.”

“But not the prisoner!” Roderick exclaimed.

“I heard the voices in the Temple,” Cassandra replied. “The Divine called to her for help.”

“Actually, that’s a matter best left open,” Aloisia said, feeling the need to address the rancor in the room. “From what I heard, the Divine mistook me for someone else. For the sake of the people counting on us, I believe we ought to address that matter before it spirals out of control.”

“Ah, yes. Let us not forget the flagrant heresy that has sprouted in the wake of the Breach,” Roderick said, seeming not to care about the source that was making this point for him. “For all we know, this is a part of it! Not just the demons, but madness afflicting the people of Thedas! A herald bearing a divine blade is heretical enough, but the other rumors… That she’s the divine daughter of the Maker and Andraste, or Andraste herself reborn?! Simply outrageous!”

“I might have agreed with you, Chancellor,” Cassandra said, clearly weighing her words carefully. “That is, I might have agreed had I not seen her in battle. Who else but a holy servant of the Maker could wield a sword of pure fire? The Lady Kallig was exactly what we needed when we needed her. More than that, her powers and her weapon mark her as someone destined for greatness.”

Aloisia watched as Roderick took a step back in fear. “Seeker, listen to yourself! You’ve gone mad from whatever plague this wretched woman had brought upon us. Surely, even you must see the ridiculousness of this all, Sister Nightingale?”

Leliana had a wry smile on her lips. “Perhaps we can let the Lady Kallig speak for herself.”

Aloisia couldn’t help but return the smile. “Thank you, Sister Leliana. To answer your fears, I make no claims to divinity. My knowledge of Andraste is probably not as extensive as would be ideal, but I was born a slave far away from here. I was freed only to be put through trials that I had to either pass or else die trying. I chose the former, and in the process I learned the skills I needed to survive. Among those skills was crafting the weapon that would save my life more times than I can count. Please stand back.”

Roderick was already against the wall in fear, but Cassandra and Leliana heeded her words as Aloisia withdrew her lightsaber and ignited the fire-orange blade. “Be careful not to touch it. There is very little this blade cannot cut through. At the very least, it managed to kill a very large and dangerous demon before I closed the rift it emerged from.”

Looking to each of the three figures, Aloisia tried to assess their intentions. Leliana maintained a mask of neutrality, but she was clearly studying things very carefully. Cassandra was resolved, but also letting a sense of awe come to the surface. As for Roderick…

“Maker have mercy,” he let out, his voice barely above a whisper. “I didn’t believe it, but it really is true. A sword of pure fire and light. But how? How is such a thing possible?”

“Providence,” Cassandra answered, and her voice held none of the hypocrisy or falsity that came with those trying to exploit the weak-minded. No, Cassandra was a true believer. “As I said, the Lady Kallig was exactly what we needed, when we needed it. If that is not enough to be a sign of the Maker’s blessing, then perhaps her sword will suffice.”

“Again,” Aloisia said, “I make no claims to holiness. I won’t deny, however, that this mark on my hand is what is needed to seal the Breach and the rifts formed in its wake. And I am offering my help to solve this problem, of my own free will.”

Disengaging her lightsaber and reattaching it to her belt, Aloisia walked across the room and extended her right hand to Roderick. “We both want to protect this world, and to save the innocents caught up in the wake of this catastrophe. If we divide ourselves now, innocents will be the ones to suffer. Don’t do anything for me, Chancellor. Whatever course of action you decide upon, you must do it for the people of Thedas.”

Roderick reached out a tentative, shaking hand, which Aloisia took in a firm grip as she smiled at him in the hopes of assuring him that all would be well. “Now, then,” Aloisia said to Cassandra and Leliana. “We’re finally all on the same page. We have our mission. How do we go about getting it done?”

Cassandra walked over to a small table and brought back a very large book, bound in leather with flimsy pages. It reminded her of the oldest tomes in the Sith Academy. “What is that?” Aloisia asked.

“This is a writ from Divine Justinia, meant as a contingency in case the Conclave failed,” Cassandra said, and her words carried the weight of authority. “As of this moment, I declare the Inquisition reborn. Our mission is to close the Breach, to find those responsible, and to restore order.” A side glance at Roderick told Aloisia that Cassandra wasn’t yet convinced of his loyalty. “With or without anyone’s approval,” she finished.

All eyes turned to Roderick. “I… This is a lot to take on faith. And yet, faith is what we must turn to in times of great hardship, and this is most definitely one such time. I confess, I am not sure what to believe. I want to believe that you are here to help, but what you can do, what you possess… I am afraid to believe what those things imply, as will a great many Grand Clerics who do not have the benefit of witnessing such things first-hand.”

“Does this mean that you will try to convince them?” Leliana asked.

“Maker help me, but yes, I will,” Roderick sighed. “I don’t know if this is the right thing to do, but this requires a leap of faith, and it is a leap that I must make. For all our sakes, I pray that you will do right by us, Lady Kallig.”

“I will do what I can, Chancellor,” Aloisia said. “As for ‘Lady Kallig,’ that is a title I’ve never had before, and I’m not sure it’s proper. And if I’m to be the one to seal the Breach, I’m likely going to need to be the face of this Inquisition. I have questions about what the ‘Inquisition reborn’ even means, and I’m positive that you will want to know more about me. The people will need to know who is coming to their aid, and that person will need a story behind her that can hold up to scrutiny.”

“Are you saying that your past is not something that would hold up to proper scrutiny in the eyes of the people?” Leliana asked. It was a challenge, but not a hostile one.

“I’m saying that the truth is very complicated,” Aloisia said. “Whatever this Inquisition is, there will be leaders in various fields. Advisors for different strategies. Trade, diplomacy, warcraft, spycraft, any number of different things. My story is convoluted enough that I would prefer only to tell it once, and only to the people who absolutely need to know it. And preferably those who will not cry heresy because it conflicts with their limited experience. I do not mean to belittle you or your beliefs, Chancellor, but I fear that the truth of who I am and where I come from is not something you are ready to hear, if only judging by your initial judgment of me. ‘Take the prisoner to Val Royeaux to face execution,’ was it?”

Roderick didn’t seem to know what to say to that, but thankfully, Leliana broke the silence. “I’m sure the surviving Grand Clerics are waiting for word of what is yet to come, Chancellor Roderick. Please let them know that the Inquisition will be working to restore order to this chaos we find ourselves in.

“And while you do that,” she said, turning her eyes back on Aloisia, “we will learn all there is to know about our ‘savior.’”

* * *

It had taken nearly a week, but things were finally starting to come together. Josie had finally arrived in Haven, and a handful of merchants had set up supply routes into both Ferelden and Orlais. Leliana’s network of spies had corroborated what Roderick had to say. Namely, that the surviving Grand Clerics and the more influential Revered Mothers did not believe in the holiness of the woman who had come to be known as the Blade of the Maker. And oh, the debates over that title. She couldn’t be Andraste, nor could she be a divine child of the prophet. Was she Herald of Andraste’s return? Or was she a symbol of the Maker himself?

In the end, her blade of fire had been the symbol they’d chosen to rally behind. Not even Andraste was known to have wielded such a powerful weapon, and it would undoubtedly be seen far and wide as the ‘Lady Blade’ made her mark on Thedas. As to who the Blade of the Maker actually was, Aloisia Kallig was not wrong that she should tell her story only once, and at the same time to all of those whom she would need to trust.

She was clearly an experienced leader. The way she had taken charge of the situation at the Breach was slightly terrifying. Leliana had serious doubts as to whether or not she could control this asset. But that was not all there was to the situation. Leliana was still the Left Hand of the Divine, fulfilling the last commands of her departed friend to the best of her ability. Forget Divine Justinia for a moment. What would Mother Dorothea have to say to Leliana right now?

The Inquisition’s spymaster wasn’t sure, and she didn’t have the time to reflect and find an answer. After issuing a few curt orders to her agents, Leliana made her way into the chantry and slipped into the makeshift war room in the back of the building. She was the first to arrive, and she started to set up the map of southern Thedas that would allow the Inquisition to plan its operations.

Cullen was the next to arrive. “Commander,” Leliana said with a polite nod. “How are you?”

“A bit anxious,” he admitted. “Would you believe that? I doubt it. I’m terrified, to be honest. The stories surrounding the Blade already are too much to believe. And I’m still not sure how I feel about dealing with someone who…”

“Someone who assumed your title and ordered your men about?” Leliana said with a small smirk. “I wouldn’t take it personally. I was there when she insisted upon being called ‘Commander.’ She claimed that it was once a title that belonged to her. She didn’t even know who you were. And you can’t say she did poorly with the men and women.”

Cullen sighed. “No, I can’t say that. Maker, Leliana. Part of me knows that she’s our best hope, but another part of me is terrified of what she might do. And she’s supposedly a mage, too!”

Leliana wondered about that. The Blade had referred to magic as if she knew it by a different name, and the powers she displayed were unlike most anything that she had encountered in her many dealings with mages over the years.

Josie came through the door next, a writing pad in hand, the candle lit. “Leliana!” she warmly greeted.

“Josie!” Leliana and Josephine kissed each other on either cheek in the fashion of close friends. “How are you? I hope your trip wasn’t too difficult? I’m sorry to have asked you to come so quickly, but things are hardly normal, as you can see.”

“Nonsense, Leliana! Of course, I am here for you! Truth be told, I would have been at the Conclave had my father not kept the Montilyet heir at home for fear of violence. Praise Andraste for a father’s caution. This tragedy changes everything, and I’ve spent every waking moment since your letter came trying to figure out the new dynamic.”

“Of course you have, Josie. But, please. Have you met Commander Cullen?”

“I can’t say I’ve had the pleasure,” Josephine said as she curtsied to the soldier. “Pray forgive my rudeness. Josephine of House Montilyet of Antiva. I’ve heard many tales of your great deeds, Commander Rutherford.”

“Just Cullen will do,” he said, looking quite nervous. “And you don’t have to beat around the bush. My reputation is hardly as savory as you seem to imply.”

“Not at all,” Josie said, not hesitating for a moment. “While I wouldn’t wish to relive your many trials, from what I have heard, you have endured and persisted throughout a great many hardships and emerged from them in a position of strength to lead the Inquisition’s armies. That is no small feat, Commander. I meant every word.”

Leliana knew that this would be remarkably awkward if allowed to continue, but thankfully, the Maker chose that moment to admit Cassandra and Lady Kallig into the makeshift war room. Cassandra doled out introductions for Aloisia’s benefit, sparing Leliana the discomfort of stepping out of her corner of shadow. The Right Hand of the Divine must have already met Josephine, or at the very least was familiar with her. That was good. One less detail to worry about.

“Before we get into the details of how the Inquisition will be operating, I believe that it is imperative that the most vital members of this organization know all there is to know about the ‘Blade of the Maker,’ as I seem to have been dubbed,” Aloisia Kallig said. “This information is highly sensitive, but also vitally important. Is there anyone in this room who should not be here? And is there anyone not here who should be?”

Leliana fielded the answer. “Everyone is here who needs to be here, and no one else.”

The Blade nodded. “Very well. I will start with what I hope is not a terribly difficult question. What can you tell me of any lands beyond Thedas? Please don’t ask me why I’m asking these questions. I promise that there is a reason for my words.”

An unexpected question, to be sure. The Blade spoke with an accent not too dissimilar to a native of Wycome, but she likely had a reason for asking what she had. “There are lands west of Thedas, or so we believe,” Leliana said. “I don’t believe there are any maps of those lands. South of Thedas is a frozen wasteland. There are islands in the Boeric Ocean north of Tevinter, and while there are rumors of lands across the Amaranthine Ocean to the East, they are just that: rumors. Why do you ask?”

“A number of reasons,” Lady Kallig answered. “First and foremost among them is to determine if the Breach threatens only Thedas or else the entire world beyond this continent. But that has little to do with my origin. Another question, for any of you to answer. What do you know about the sun? Can you define it? Tell me what it is?”

“This is a waste of time!” Cullen yelled. “The sun is the sun, plain and simple. What does that have to do with anything?!”

“Keep your voice down, Commander,” Kallig hissed. “I was not lying about the sensitivity of this information. Anyone else? Can anyone else tell me more about the sun? And I don’t mean what the Chantry teaches, but actual facts that people have been able to observe on their own.”

Leliana had absolutely no idea what the Blade was talking about, and from the look on her face, neither did Cassandra. Sparing a look at Josie, Leliana hoped to signal her to ask something nicely, the way that she did.

“I’m afraid we don’t seem to have an answer for you beyond what Commander Cullen has already spoken of,” Josephine said tactfully. “If I may be so bold, are there further questions or statements you have to spring from this one that will make things clearer?”

The Blade smiled. “Oh, I like you, Lady Josephine. You are correct. The answer is that the sun is no different from any other star in the sky. However, all of us are close enough to the sun that it appears as a bright ball of fire in the sky. The stars in the night sky are too many to count, but many of them are home to worlds like this one, full of people the likes of which you can’t imagine. From far away, this sun will appear as no more than a speck of light in the night sky, but up close, each of those stars is a sun unto itself.”

While the others were trying to grasp the implications of the nature of the sun and the stars, Leliana felt a chill go up her spine as she felt she understood the implications of what the Blade was trying to say. It was outlandish and ridiculous, but she had to confirm what was being implied. “You weren’t born in Thedas, or in any of the lands beyond that you asked about.” It wasn’t a question. “You mean to tell us that you come from another world with another sun. From a star in the sky.”

All eyes in the room turned to Leliana, and they seemed to look at her as if she was mad to suggest such a thing. Truth be told, Leliana herself felt slightly mad for even voicing such a thought aloud. Then the others slowly turned to Lady Kallig, who simply nodded. “Sister Leliana is correct. Unless I’m mistaken, the Chantry likely has a very different explanation for the sun and for the night sky, and their reactions are why I’m asking you to keep your voices down and to keep this information to yourselves. I’m only telling you this because without this simple knowledge, most of my personal history will be that much harder to describe. Your Blade of the Maker needs a story, and it will need to be one that Thedosians are comfortable with. I’m giving you the whole story and leaving it to you to spin it into something palatable.”

“I don’t believe this!” Cullen hissed, thankfully not raising his voice. “Surely, none of you can actually believe this nonsense?”

“Your belief or lack thereof is irrelevant, Commander Cullen,” the Blade said, her voice that of a mentor dismissing an upstart child. “It will not change the facts. Now that we’ve gotten that great big hurdle out of the way, I suppose I should tell you where my story begins, and then how it led me here. And Lady Josephine? I’m not sure if it would be wise to write certain things down where they can be later seen by others rifling through your belongings.”

Josie looked as pale as an Antivan could, but she nodded in agreement all the same. “As you say, Lady Blade.”

Cassandra looked like she was about to have a headache. “The last ‘story’ I listened to upended too many things I thought to be true. I was made to question things long since established as basic fact. I fear that your story will ask far more of me, Lady Blade.”

“It may at that,” Kallig agreed. “Perhaps you should all sit down. This may take a while.”


	5. From the Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aloisia Kallig shares with her advisors how she rose from a slave to become the Blade of the Maker. Headaches ensue.

Josephine Montilyet didn’t think of herself as a remarkably devout woman, but she would definitely call herself an observant Andrastian. She was realistic enough to know that the Chant of Light served at times to explain what could not be explained, and she also knew all too well how often those responsible for spreading the Chant had failed in their duties to protect and to help the people of the world. All the same, the Chant of Light was the strongest, and often the only thing that could truly unite the peoples of Thedas.

And now, Aloisia Kallig had come and claimed to have literally fallen from the heavens to challenge everything. Despite the outlandishness of her tale, Josephine was enraptured by it. The very idea that there were other worlds out there, with civilizations stretching across the night sky itself was staggering. And there were similarities between Lady Kallig’s story and the history of Thedas. Her Sith Empire sounded frightfully similar to the Tevinter Imperium, for example. Despite the outlandishness of it all, Josephine couldn’t help but get caught up in the Lady Blade’s story. Maker help her, but she couldn’t help but believe what she was hearing.

More than the leap of faith to believe in worlds in the night sky were the parallels that Josephine couldn’t help but draw between Aloisia and Andraste. Both were born into a sort of imperial slavery, and both had risen out of slavery to become something far greater. Unlike Andraste, however, Aloisia hadn’t escaped to lead a holy rebellion. She’d been elevated out of slavery to fill her Empire’s ranks, and from there she had risen to a student, and then to a Lord – apparently it was a gender-neutral title among her people – and then to one of the twelve highest ranking lords in her Empire, known as Darths.

Her service to her people had earned her the title ‘Darth Imperius,’ and she was elevated to a body called the ‘Dark Council,’ and that phrasing was more than a little concerning. Aloisia had clarified that the war her people were embroiled in was rooted in a religious conflict dating back thousands of years. Aloisia’s ancestors were originally exiles from their rivals known as Jedi. They had been cast out and insulted as ‘dark’ while the Jedi proclaimed themselves ‘servants of the light.’ The Sith had taken the ‘darkness’ cast on them as an epithet and claimed it for themselves.

While Josephine was still trying to wrap her head around the idea of a millennia-long religious conflict stretching across the night sky, Aloisia herself had to clarify and confess that her homeland was full of self-serving betrayers who would sooner raise themselves above others rather than serve the people of their Empire. Having come from a life of slavery, Lady Kallig had a different outlook from her peers, but that didn’t answer everything.

“Forgive me, Lady Blade, but I have a question about this Empire that you served, if I may?”

Thankfully, the Blade was patient and ready with a smile. “Go right ahead, Lady Josephine.”

“Oh, please. Just ‘Josephine’ is perfectly fine, my lady. As to your Sith Empire, I confess to some confusion regarding its leadership. You were one of twelve councilors that each oversaw a specific part of the Empire’s governance, yes?”

“That’s right. Specifically, I was in charge of the Sphere of Ancient Knowledge. All of the Empire’s efforts to catalog and research various relics and tomes containing the knowledge of our forebears: all of that was my responsibility.”

The system of governance in itself was an intriguing notion, and that it had been effective across countless worlds, each of them several times the size and population of Thedas… No. This was getting away from her question. “Yes, you were one among eleven other equals. But if you were in fact part of an Empire… Forgive me, but what of your Emperor or Empress? I don’t believe you’ve mentioned such a person yet.”

The Lady Blade’s eyes widened, and her facial muscles twitched. It was almost imperceptible, but Josephine knew that she had hit a sore spot, and she regretted it instantly. “The Emperor of the Sith," Aloisia Kallig said through gritted teeth, "was nothing like the Empress of Orlais or the King of Ferelden. The latter two are mortal beings of flesh and blood like you and me. The Sith Empire in its current incarnation has endured for over thirteen centuries. In all that time, there have been only two Emperors and one Empress. Empress Acina took over approximately seven years ago and died five years later in a mad drive to claim a powerful weapon. Since then, Emperor Vowrawn has taken up the reins.

“Before Acina, there was only one Sith Emperor. We spoke of him as you would speak of the Maker. ‘Thank the Emperor’ was a common phrase, to use a simple example. He was so far above any of us that he might as well have been a god. The average citizen certainly viewed him as such, and he was truly powerful enough to back up such a claim.

“Seeker Cassandra,” Aloisia said to the Right Hand of the Divine. “Do you recall when Solas said he doubted that any mage could create the Breach? I have little doubt that the former Sith Emperor could do so with ease. He wouldn’t have any reason to do so, however. His actual crimes were far worse.”

“Worse than the Breach?” Cullen asked, his voice full of skepticism. “Forgive me, but even after all you’ve told me, I don’t see how such any of what you’ve told us is possible, let alone something worse than the Breach.”

If Josephine was honest with herself, she couldn’t picture anything worse herself. “You mentioned his crimes,” she said as diplomatically as she could. “If he was your ruler, how could anything he did be criminal?”

Aloisia put a hand to her forehead before taking a number of deep breaths, then stood up straighter and looked each of them in the eye. “It would probably help you to understand if you thought of him less as a man and more of a supremely powerful demon, to use terminology you would understand. He did not require a body to exist, though he both wanted and needed bodies to attain his goals. His power was fueled by violent death, and the war he instigated between the Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic was merely a way for him to feed and gain more power. His own Empire and its people were merely tools to feed his hunger. Tell me, anyone: how many people live in all of Thedas? And I mean all people of all races.”

Josephine wasn’t sure what the point of the question was, but so far everything Aloisia Kallig had said had had some sort of point to it, so she did the math. “I’m unsure entirely, especially since the Qunari are so secretive, and Orzammar has only begun lessening restrictions on outsiders in the past decade under King Bhelen, but I would estimate somewhere between ten and twenty million individuals live in Thedas.”

Aloisia nodded. “That’s good to know. So you know that a thousand thousands is a million. Do you have a word for a thousand millions?”

The scope of the question wasn’t anything that Josephine had ever thought about, and she had to stop her mouth from dropping open at the prospect of such a large number. “Not that I am aware of, Lady Blade,” she managed to say, hopefully without looking too foolish.

The Blade simply nodded as she held her hands pressed together in front of her face, seeming to be in thought. “For my people, a thousand millions was equal to one billion, and a thousand billions was one trillion. Of all the inhabited worlds that I have visited, finding one with a total population in the millions - as opposed to the billions - is a rarity. Ziost was one of the most populous worlds in the Sith Empire, and it was home to at least several billion people. The Empire and the Republic each comprised hundreds of worlds and trillions of subjects. Ziost wasn’t the capital of the Empire, but it was a major economic hub and trading center. 'The Gateway to the Empire,' as it was known to merchants and others seeking to visit the center of the Empire's power.

“What the Emperor did... If you want to be very generous, you could say that he abdicated his throne and then went to Ziost. To be clear, he was not a being of flesh and blood at this point. He was more like a storm of energy with a terrible will. I mentioned before that he found bodies to be useful? He possessed thousands of individual citizens and soldiers - all of them simultaneously - and forced them to murder each other to fuel his power. And when he was strong enough, he consumed all life on Ziost in a matter of seconds. From the tallest tree to the smallest child to every last scrap of bacteria… Everything was gone. All to fuel his power and his hunger for immortality. All that was left were the buildings of metal and the stone beneath our feet. The soil couldn't be called as such even more, for it couldn't grow anything ever again. The clouds were more clumps of ash than anything else, and color itself had been leeched away from everything. From the ground, from the surviving buildings, from the sky itself.”

“Maker have mercy,” Cullen whispered, and Josephine couldn’t help but agree, though she did wonder what exactly a ‘bacteria’ was. How could such an evil being even exist, let alone have the power to commit such atrocities? It was quite literally beyond imagining.

“In the end, the Sith Empire was just a plaything for him," Aloisia continued. "He was so powerful that he had actually managed to create an entire second empire. He had kept it hidden from both the Sith and from the Republic, until he decided to try something new and have that second empire invade both sides at once, and the Eternal Empire took control over the entire galaxy. But that requires some elaboration." Despite the horror of it all, Josephine could not help but be intrigued by the notion of so many new and unimaginably vast cultures as yet unknown to her.

“Shortly before the demise of Ziost, we discovered a plot by a misguided man who thought that if he could revive the Emperor into a physical body, then he would be able to strike him down for good. He was wrong, but the threat of a fully revitalized Emperor required the Sith and the Jedi - mortal enemies and their allies - to come together to try and stop this ritual. We succeeded, but it didn’t matter in the end. The death from the fighting was enough without him needing to take a physical host, and Ziost was lost. All the same, some few members from both factions united once again in short order to pursue his spirit, along with tracing attacks that we did not yet know were from this second Empire.

“We found both, and by this point, the Emperor had taken a personal interest in me. He offered to share his power with me if I would kneel to him. I refused, and what followed was a flurry of activity that ended with the Emperor’s physical body dead, his spirit invading my mind, and his son declaring full scale war on the rest of the galaxy.”

“You were possessed?!” Cassandra asked, raising her voice as she stood to her feet.

“Please, we agreed to keep our voices down,” Josephine chided gently, but she couldn’t help but agree that this was terrifying development. “I do not believe that the Lady Kallig would be sharing this with us if she was still possessed as she once was.”

“You are right, Josephine. I knew I liked you,” Lady Kallig said with a smile that made Josephine blush despite the seriousness of the Blade's claims. “And the spirit of the Emperor was not like a spirit of the Fade. Fade spirits reflect aspects of mortal existence, and they tend to turn into demons when the shock of the material world overwhelms them. Spirits of the dead such as I have experienced are the ghosts of once-living people. They can be powerful, but in the end, if one ends up in your body, they have only as much power as you allow them, which was how I managed to expel him from my mind in the end.

“Before that time came, however, I was frozen. My body was encased in a block of what you might call a type of ice, and I was hung on a wall as a trophy for five years. And then the woman who I would go on to marry rescued me. With her help, I formed an Alliance of individuals from the Empire, from the Republic, and from several other smaller factions and other independents. Together, we took the fight to Zakuul and emerged victorious. And I struck down the Emperor in a duel within my own mind, and at the time, I thought I had permanently destroyed him. I would face what remained of him once more, years later, and now I dare to hope that he truly is gone forever.

“But without a common foe - no third faction nor a malevolent ghost to united against - both Empire and Republic began gearing up for war with each other again, and I came to make a terrible choice. The Sith Empire that I had given so much to protect had been founded for the sole purpose of feeding the insatiable hunger of a self-proclaimed god, and the society he built was engineered towards cruelty and oppression. So I offered my Alliance to the Republic, but they would not accept open aid. They forced me to become a double agent and pretend to aid the people of the Empire. And I saw that there were plenty of ordinary people who were worried about food in their bellies, simple things that anyone can relate to.

“I wanted to free the people of the Empire from the corruption that it had been founded upon, and for all my zeal, the Republic betrayed me. They feared that they couldn’t control me, and they feared that my intentions weren’t genuine. And that sabotage led me here, to Thedas, where I seem to be destined to live out the remainder of my days.

“And that is, in brief summation, what brought me from the life of a simple slave to become the Blade of the Maker. Make of it what you will.”

More than the star-spanning wars between powerful mages, more than the tales of the god-like evil emperor, the last part of Aloisia’s story struck a chord with Josephine. It was all too familiar in a way that was simultaneously frightening and beautiful. “You tried to liberate a people you felt were enslaved, and you were betrayed for your efforts. Is that an accurate summation, my lady?”

Cullen glared at her. “Lady Josephine, surely you cannot mean to suggest that she truly is Andraste reborn, can you?”

“I am not suggesting anything, but I am saying that there are parallels,” Josephine said carefully. “Born into slavery, then raised up to freedom to become a leader of men and women. Betrayed by those she turned to for aid, which in the end brought her to us, when we needed her most.” Josephine was not so much surprised that she was making this analogy than she was amazed that she found herself believing in it. If the universe was so much larger than she had ever imagined, with untold worlds surrounding untold stars, then the Maker himself must surely be far larger than anything Josephine had ever imagined. How could she be sure that Aloisia Kallig was not sent by the Maker to help the people of Thedas?

And with full knowledge of what Lady Kallig claimed to be the truth, how in Andraste’s name were they to create an identity for her that would not immediately spark cries of heresy?

* * *

Cassandra had spoken only once during the Blade’s tale, and the casual dismissal of her possession by a being she once worshipped as a god gave the Seeker no small amount of pause. The feats of power that this thing calling itself Emperor had done were far beyond terrifying, and the Blade of the Maker had supposedly defeated such evil. How she had done this was not so clear, but Cassandra did not think she would be satisfied until she had some semblance of an explanation. Between Leliana and Ambassador Montilyet, there would be a cover story. But that was not what had Cassandra worried.

“During the assault on the Breach,” she began, “you talked about your powers as ‘what we call magic.’ Whatever you do, you do not call it magic, at the very least. Your Emperor, did he use similar powers? How do you define such things? What limits are there on what you can do?”

“I would also be keen to learn more about this,” Cullen said. “Magic is dangerous, and if you’ve learned it differently from how we know it here, then we need to know how to keep you safe from possession, and we also need to know what other dangers you may have inadvertently brought with you.”

The Blade nodded in what looked like approval. “Important questions, both of them. To put it simply, what you call magic is an effect of an action taken. Or rather, a spell is an action taken. How do I put this?”

“Is it truly so difficult to put into words?” Cassandra asked.

“Actually, it is,” Kallig answered, and the Seeker felt her cheeks flush with shame. She was presuming too much, rushing for answers instead of properly seeking the truth, just as her instructors had always chided her for. “The thing is, this world is not like any other I have come across. In no other world have I found anything like the Fade. Ever since I arrived, I’ve felt something wrong with this world, and I think I’ve been feeling the Veil. It’s not so much a barrier as it is a wound of some sort. Imagine your flesh has been cut and then sewn back together. That is how the veil feels to me, like a stitched wound keeping two sides apart from each other. But even that isn't quite accurate to what I feel. Both sides are part of the same whole, or I feel that they should be, but they’ve been ripped apart and stitched together so as to make the wound - the Veil - invisible to the naked eye.

“And now we have the Breach, and the wound is split open for all to see. But I’m not convinced the Veil should have ever been there in the first place. It’s so different from any other world… I don’t know how to explain it, other than it simply feels wrong in a way I can’t explain.”

“What do you mean when you say ‘you feel’ something about the Fade” Cassandra asked. “The way you speak, you don’t sound as though you mean something you physically touch.”

“You’re right, Cassandra. I suppose I should explain how things are for me normally. Again, this may go against the Chant of Light, but I’m only speaking to how I was taught. What I do is not casting spells, or at least I don't refer to it as such. The things I do result from me calling upon the Force. As to what the Force is… It is the Great Mystery. The Force itself is energy that binds everything in this universe together. Things like size and distance are irrelevant. The Force is everywhere and in everything. Life creates and feeds the Force, helping it to grow. It is the way in which the Force is perceived that caused the split between the Sith and the Jedi so many millennia ago.

“The Jedi see the Force as an ally that is omnipresent, with a will of its own. They meditate and remain passive, allowing the Force to guide them with less thought for themselves and more for the Force itself. The Sith view the Force as a tool or a weapon, actively harnessing its power to use in many ways. The true nature of the Force is likely a combination of those things, or else somewhere in the middle, or else something else entirely. I prefer to think of it as the Great Mystery, through which all things are possible if one seeks answers in the right way.

“I don’t draw on the Fade, or I don’t think I do. I feel the Force connecting my hand to this goblet,” she said, and the goblet in front of the Blade rose into the air. “I feel the Force connect the goblet to your table setting, Seeker, and I tug on the threads to move it towards you.” The goblet floated over to her. “And then I let the connection between the table and the goblet grow until it sets itself down.” And just like that, the goblet came to rest on the table in front of Cassandra.

The reverence in the Blade’s words was troubling, considering how antithetical it seemed to the Chant of Light. “You sound like you worship this ‘Force.’” Cassandra asked gently, hoping she wasn’t saying something that would bring down an unknown wrath upon her.

“Oh, not at all,” Lady Kallig said warmly. “The Force does exist, and I can feel its presence as surely as you can see, hear, and smell the world in front of you. I believe that it holds answers, but I don’t worship it. In truth, I don’t worship at all. The last being I worshipped murdered billions before I struck him down for what I hope was the final time. After that, I find it difficult to view gods with anything other than suspicion and fear.”

“Do you realize how this will sound?” Cullen said, his voice starting to rise. “An atheist mage – for lack of a better term – leading an Andrastian Inquisition?”

“I’m sorry, Commander,” the Blade said as she turned to glare at Cullen, and Cassandra could have sworn she felt the room grow cold. “If this Inquisition is Andrastian, then I will have no part of it. The Breach threatens every living thing on this world, regardless of how they choose to pray. Lady Cassandra,” Aloisia said as her green eyes refocused on the Seeker. “You said that the Inquisition would close the Breach, find those responsible, and restore order. Did you intend to only help those who pray to the Maker, or did you truly mean to help the whole of the world? Would your Maker want you to forsake those who do not worship him, or is his ego so fragile that he will not deign to recognize his children who see another path?”

“Enough!” Leliana said at last. “Lady Blade, while we appreciate your unique insight, do not blaspheme in front of us and expect us to stand idly by. And Cullen: the Blade may not be Andrastian, but she is right. The Breach threatens everyone, and so the Inquisition must stand for everyone.” Cassandra was supremely grateful that Leliana had the courage to call Aloisia Kallig out on her blasphemy. The idea that the Maker could be fallible enough to have an ego to be bruised was not something that she was willing to think about.

“Leliana is right,” Josephine said. “Despite these terrible circumstances, we are presented with a unique opportunity to bring people together in common cause. The Civil War in Orlais, the conflict between mages and Templars, the Imperium’s war with the Qunari: none of it will matter unless the Breach is dealt with. This is a chance to unite Thedas like never before, if only the right people are brave enough to see past their differences.”

“That is a lot to hope for, Lady Josephine,” Cullen said. “It’s highly optimistic at best, but I doubt its practicality.”

“And on that note,” Aloisia said as she rose to her feet, “I think I’ve shared all that is relevant for the time being. I’d like to meet with each of you individually and also collectively later on to get a feeling for where we stand. In the meantime, I feel it would be best for me to walk around Haven and get to know the people under our command. So long as this Inquisition is small enough, I intend to know every face and every name. If it gets too large for that to be feasible, then we will have new problems. Does anyone have anything else to add before we adjourn for today?”

Cassandra felt that she should say something, anything, but she was at a loss for whatever might need to be said. The stories that the Lady Blade had shared lacked the narrative flair of Varric’s tale of the Champion of Kirkwall, but the genuineness of the story’s telling made it all the more compelling and all the more terrifying.

“Very well, then,” Aloisia Kallig said. “Thank you for your time and your patience. Do what needs to be done, and do it right, but let’s not take too long. This world isn’t going to save itself without us, after all.”

As their only hope left the room, Cassandra realized how the situation must seem to Aloisia. She hadn’t said ‘the world isn’t going to save itself.’ No, not ‘the world.’ She had specified ‘this world.’ One world out of many that she had supposedly visited, out of many that she had probably saved, if her tale was true. Her story threatened the truth of the Chant of Light, but from the eyes of the Blade, the Chant likely seemed a quaint thing. In truth, she treated it more like an obstacle than anything else. And Cassandra would be lying if she had thought of the Inquisition as anything but a branch of the Andrastian faith. To have the Blade of the Maker outright forbid such a thing…

If the world’s only hope for sealing the Breach saw the Chant of Light – the entire Andrastian philosophy itself, quite possibly – as an obstruction in her path, then what would the world look like when she was done saving it?

**Author's Note:**

> Regarding Aloisia's nickname, Aloy is short for Aloisia, which is a female form of Aloysius, which is the first name of her ancestor: Lord Kallig. This fanfic is NOT related in any way to Horizon: Zero Dawn, save that I based Aloisia's face and hair off of Aloy from that game. But the similarities are literally just skin-deep.
> 
> I also want to thank the authors of Age of the Dragon, Herald of Time and Space, The Half-Life of Element Zero, and all of the 'Lana and Viri' series of fanfics, not just What Was, What Was Not. These three authors have written some amazing stories that have truly inspired me with so many ideas that I hope to make use of in my own story without stealing or plagiarizing anything, if I can help it. The first three of the stories listed, as well as the many stories in the Lana and Viri series, are all remarkable reads, and I highly recommend them to any fan of quality fanfiction.
> 
> Lastly, while I have written a number of works of fanfiction before, this is my first attempt with portraying the world and characters of Dragon Age. I am a fan of the series, but not quite as die-hard a fan as some other authors. I will do my absolute best to do justice to the beloved characters of Dragon Age, but I am stepping into what is - for me - uncharted waters. If at any point while reading this story, you see me portraying any character or aspect of the story in a way that you don't feel is appropriate or in-character, I urge you to leave a comment with constructive criticism. So long as your words are said in good faith and without meanness, I will be more than happy to take any advice you may have to give.
> 
> With all of that said, thank you for taking the time to give this story a chance. Maker watch over you, and may the Force be with you. ^_^


End file.
